Boy and girl?
by show-addicted
Summary: Atobe Keigo is a man who takes everything in stride and finds solutions to any problems. One night, he receives a very unexpected visit from a certain Seigaku captain, who needs his help. Why? Well... because all of a sudden, he's now a girl.
1. Chapter 1: The boy, the girl, the shark?

Title: Boy and girl?

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Pairing: Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu

Rating: T (PG13~R)

Genre: AU, romance, comedy

Warnings: gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness

**Summary:** Atobe Keigo is a man who takes everything in stride and finds solutions to any problems. One night, he receives a very unexpected visit from a certain Seigaku captain, who needs his help. Why? Well... because all of a sudden, he's now a girl.

Disclaimer: I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

* * *

Atobe Keigo was a hard man to amaze or surprise, and he took great satisfaction in this well-known fact. He had a knack for surprising and amazing others with his undeniable prowess in every aspect of life, but he, himself, could not be shaken easily. He was rather fond of this state of affairs, too.

So he didn't show his surprise when his butler announced the arrival of a rather distressed lady to his manor, a lady who demanded to see young master Atobe immediately, even though she didn't have an appointment, and threatened to break into tears at any moment. It was no unusual occurrence that girls went to great measures just to be able to bask in Atobe's magnificent presence for a few moments, but they rarely decided to be this extreme in their efforts.

Atobe tried to make a mental list of all the girls that he could possibly know, who would not waver before such a reckless act. However, he wasn't able to recall even one female daring enough to come to his home and demand anything of him, not to mention at such a late hour. He briefly thought of Seigaku's Fuji or Rikkai's Yukimura, who both had enough femininity in them to fool even his loyal servants; but he discarded the possibility as too improbable. Neither Fuji nor Yukimura had any business with him, and neither of them would resort to crying as their bargaining ace.

The mysterious lady picked his interest; in addition to being slightly curious, Atobe admitted to himself that he would hate to make a girl cry, whoever she could be. The concept just didn't agree with his gentlemanly soul. So, after a brief moment of considering his options, Atobe Keigo decided to see the desperate girl that needed his presence this badly.

He expected many things when he entered the guest hall, designed especially for unexpected visitors to wait for his father or himself in the most comfortable of conditions; love confessions, marriage proposals, offers to carry his babies and death threats if he refused all went through his mind on his short way to the hall. What he did not expect was the sight he stumbled upon: a girl, a good few inches shorter than him, wearing a Seigaku school uniform – a boy's uniform, to be exact, which by the way was too big on her – with her head lowered and her hair obscuring the view of her face. She was shaking and, Atobe realised, she really was going to cry any time.

Now, what could that mean? Atobe entertained the possibility that the girl could have been attacked by someone from Hyoutei and decided to ask him for help, but that didn't explain the decidedly male uniform that hung from her small form; he couldn't come up with much more before the girl finally looked up at him – she was wearing glasses and her face was awfully familiar – and she said, her voice breaking,

'Atobe... help me,' before tears flowed down her cheeks.

Atobe Keigo wasn't easy to surprise, but right at that moment, he was receiving the surprise of his life and he was unfortunately completely unable to hide it, caught off-guard like he was. Staring at the girl with his eyes widened impossibly, he opened and closed his mouth a few times until finally, he managed to utter one word:

'T-Tezuka?'

His answer was a nod and a soft sob.

* * *

It didn't take very long for Atobe to figure out what happened, although he couldn't deny that the story he heard was hardly believable. No matter how he looked at it, it sounded like something taken out of a bad American comedy for teenagers. Only, American comedy flicks apparently didn't involve Seigaku's Inui, whose presence made everything that much more plausible.

According to the girl – who Atobe assumed to really be Tezuka for the time being – it all started with an innocent practice exercise: hitting the posts with appointed colours with tennis balls. A task simple enough, but Tezuka was still recovering from his recent injury, and so Inui deemed his performance below his usual level; he'd walked up to Tezuka after practice, when they were already back in their uniforms, ready to go home, and forced the captain to drink a new evil concoction he'd cooked up. It had a rather pleasant, pastel pink colour that one could associate with yoghurt or strawberry milkshakes (and it's name, "Ichigo sheeku", seemed to point to that), and Tezuka got careless – he drank the thing to the last drop. It tasted vile, more so than any previous drinks, and before losing consciousness, Tezuka heard Inui's explanation:

'Actually, it's called "I-chi-go shaaku". It's most important ingredient is five drops of blood from a shark's stomach. It's very healthy and-'

He heard no more as darkness consumed him. His last thought was that he didn't want to die before winning the National Tournament with his team.

When he woke up what seemed like hours later in the deserted clubhouse, it was already dark outside. He felt strangely light-headed and out of his skin, but he was a bit used to it after so many years of drinking Inui's inventions that even Fuji couldn't withstand; his vision was blurry, but he got to his feet anyway and shook his head, which helped.

The first thing he saw was that the clubhouse was not deserted after all. Inui was there, standing in the semi-darkness, and when Tezuka moved, he looked straight at him with piercing green eyes that were only this visible in extreme situations. Tezuka felt a sense of dread.

'I don't know how this happened,' Inui said. His voice sounded more confused than apologetic and the captain realized that yes, this was a good moment to become scared. 'It makes no sense. I tested it on myself and there was no such effect, it was safe for others to drink. It makes no sense.'

Tezuka decided not to voice his opinion that there was never a concoction of Inui's safe for humans to consume in existence; he was waiting for Inui to explain what exactly he was talking about. It was getting very late and he should have been home right after practice. His parents were probably getting really worried.

'Inui, it's okay. We all faint from-' he paused. Something was very wrong with his voice. It sounded... much higher. Like Fuji's voice. Or even higher than that. More like... a girl's? Did the drink do something to his vocal cords? He hoped it was going to pass.

'I'm so sorry, Tezuka. I don't know how to reverse it. I'll do what I can, I will withdraw from the club activities and devote my whole time to finding a cure,' Inui promised, only now sounding like he meant it. Tezuka hated to admit it, but now he was scared. This wasn't the dataman's normal behaviour. He was just standing there, obscuring the view of the large mirror behind him, averting Tezuka's gaze, his notebook forgotten – and since when was Inui _that much_ taller than him?

'What... have you done?' The captain asked, trying to be calm, forcing himself to be calm, because surely, getting too emotional would only make matters worse; Inui looked at him again, and then finally stepped away, revealing the mirror, in which Tezuka could see himself.

Only, he was not a "he" anymore.

So he did something very uncharacteristic for him: he panicked and ran, ignoring Inui's calls, scared, confused and unable to act cool.

* * *

No matter how far-fetched, Atobe had to admit that the story explained a lot. Of course, some things still remained a mystery to him – like the most obvious question of why Tezuka chose to run to him of all people. He decided not to ask, though, well aware that his rival could pretty much break down again. He was surprised to see Tezuka in such a state of mind, but he figured that, given the situation, it was understandable. He supposed he would have had a slight panic attack as well if he were in Tezuka's place, so someone not as perfect as him (but, in his personal and very heavily guarded opinion, _almost_ as perfect) was completely expected to have a stronger reaction.

While Atobe had no idea why Tezuka came to him for help, he was certain that the choice was most appropriate. He was a man with power, after all, resourceful enough to provide everything the Seigaku captain would need in this complicated state of affairs. But first things first.

'You need to calm down,' the heir to the Atobe fortune said softly, touching Tezuka's shoulder when he saw his rival was shaking again. 'I will order for a hot bath for you, and a cup of warm milk. It'll help you relax. Then, you shall go to sleep in the guest bedroom closest to mine. While you take your bath, I will send one of my loyal servants to explain to your family that we had a practice match which took longer than we anticipated and thus, in order not to let you walk home in the dark, I insisted that you stay at my place for the night,' he never once changed the tone of his voice, which was warm, soft and seemed to have a calming effect on the distressed teen. 'We will discuss what to do next in the morning, with fresh minds.'

Tezuka nodded his head; Atobe's words reassured him quite visibly. Even though nothing got solved, the other captain stopped shaking. It was a start, Atobe supposed. He called for a servant and told her to prepare a bath for the lady. He also explained to her that the girl would be staying at the mansion until further notice and he wanted her in his close proximity, because she was his personal responsibility and he vowed to protect her.

If the servant thought it was strange, she didn't show it. She was too used to young master's dramatic antics.

Atobe sent Tezuka off to the giant bathroom with another female servant (but not before promising to see him again before he goes to sleep, to ensure everything was alright) and set off to make some phone-calls. He was preparing for a long night; many things needed to be done before morning, none of them could wait. This was an unexpected predicament he'd found himself in, but he wasn't going to complain.

Somehow, the awareness that Tezuka trusted him made him happy.

* * *

Come morning, Tezuka was back to his own self as much as possible in the circumstances. As Atobe predicted, a good night's sleep worked wonders; when the two teens met over breakfast, Tezuka was as calm and collected as he ever was.

He was also wearing his over-sized school uniform and the ugly glasses that were too big on him in this new form. Atobe decided this wouldn't do, and he decided to break it out to the other captain during the meal.

'I assume you do realize how impossible it is for you to go back to the tennis club right now?' He asked, giving off the air of authority. He would not be questioned on the matter. Or at least he thought so.

'I am still their captain,' Tezuka said as if it were obvious that he was going back, completely disregarding Atobe's opinion. 'Also, Inui might have come up with a solution.'

'He hasn't come up with a solution. He's currently working on it in a facility I have so generously offered him and he will report directly to me if he discovers anything helpful,' Atobe countered. If he still had any doubts that this girl sitting on the opposite side of the table to him was really Tezuka, they have disappeared the moment the other teen opened his mouth.

Even their conversations were like a game of tennis; while Atobe attacked with big words that showed his magnificence – not unlike his exquisite techniques on court – Tezuka chose to keep his comments simple and effective, returning Atobe's arguments and adding a spin to them that made Atobe lose control of the conversation.

Well, not this time, Atobe resolved; this time, he knew he was the one in the right, without even the slightest margin of doubt.

'My team needs me,' Tezuka said stubbornly.

'No, they don't need you. They need Tezuka Kunimitsu, their _male_ captain. Do I need to remind you that your body has undergone some big changes? Not only will your team be weirded out to learn the story of what happened, you will also be banned from playing for your club. Do you know why?' Atobe paused and waited for Tezuka to consider his words. 'Because, as you have probably guessed, the rules do not allow girls to play in clubs for boys. So unless you plan to tell the whole school, even the whole country, that ridiculous story of a strawberry-shark drink that turned you into a girl – which, by the way, would undoubtedly have very amusing results – you have to assume a new identity and cut your ties with Seigaku for the time being.'

The moment his words sunk in, Tezuka opened his mouth to say something, but Atobe shook his head, silencing him quite effectively.

'You came to me for help and I will help you, Tezuka. But it will be on my terms. If you cannot accept it, you are welcome to leave and deal with everything by yourself. However, if you do that, I will not think twice about not helping you again, no matter what happens.' The young heir's gaze was steady as he spoke. He was serious, he carefully chose the words that left his mouth, because after this conversation, there would be no turning back, no matter the outcome.

Finally, after the prolonged silence, during which both captains stared each other down in what seemed like another challenge, Tezuka lowered his eyes at the table, admitting defeat.

'I really need your help with this,' he said, barely above a whisper, clearly ashamed. It was a moment to remember: Seigaku's normally fearless, unshakeable captain was giving up, leaving Atobe in charge of his life from now on, until they could find a cure for his state.

For a second, Tezuka fought the horrible realization that it might had been an irreversible transformation which even Inui wouldn't be able to turn back. It scared him so much, he paled and Atobe, with his famous insight, noticed immediately.

'Don't. Don't, for even a second, doubt that you'll be returning to normal,' he all but ordered, oozing authority and self-confidence. 'If it were anyone other than me, you could doubt them however much you wanted to. But _Ore-sama's prowess_ is not to be doubted.'

Oh, there were times when Atobe wasn't sure of his ability to make everything right. But now, he was absolutely certain, was not such a time.

* * *

The plan, in Atobe's not so humble opinion, was just perfect. Tezuka, under a new name, was to enter Hyoutei, where he could stay under the care and protection Atobe was more than willing to bestow upon him. He would attend the same classes Atobe or a regular from Hyoutei's tennis club took, and under no circumstances was he to go visit Seigaku until he was back to normal.

Meanwhile, Atobe would make everyone believe that thanks to his magnificence and generosity that matched no other, Tezuka went to a rehabilitation facility abroad, but would be back before the next match of Seigaku's to lead them to victory as a captain. He was aware that this part would be the most difficult, because frankly, Seigaku didn't trust him one bit; but with some convincing and an authentic letter from Tezuka, he was sure he could pull it off.

He didn't expect that there would be one thing Tezuka would strongly oppose to – that one thing being a girl's school uniform.

'I will not wear a skirt,' the other captain informed him, his steely gaze warning Atobe that this was not up for discussion. The heir paid no heed to the warning, though; he lowered his voice to a low hiss that sounded dangerous enough to scare little children:

'I am not going to repeat myself again, Tezuka. Do as you're told or feel free to leave and not come back,' he paused for dramatic effect. Of course, the other captain wasn't impressed. 'You have to wear a skirt! What's so hard to comprehend in the concept of "wearing a school uniform befitting one's gender"?'

'I am _not_ a girl,' Tezuka protested coolly. Atobe stared at him pointedly and noted, with a hint of satisfaction, that his rival averted his eyes. 'I'm not _really_ a girl. I will not wear a skirt,' Tezuka repeated stubbornly, although this time, there was a hint of defeat in his voice.

In the end, he did wear the skirt, as a part of the school uniform. Atobe noted that he would have to give his compliments to the seamstress who's created the set in perfect size at such short notice. Complete with the contacts that replaced the ugly glasses, the whole outfit looked good on Tezuka's lithe form.

'I look stupid,' Tezuka complained, though, as they were about to leave the mansion. For a reason unfathomable to Atobe, the other captain chose to be unbearable throughout the whole morning. Like a spoiled child... or a girl, Atobe supposed. This kind of made sense.

'No, you do not,' said the heir. 'You look normal. Like your typical junior high third grader. Which is something new for you,' he added after a bit of thought, which earned him a glare from Tezuka. He laughed. 'Don't be like that. This could actually turn out a good experience. Plus, you'll be able to spy on Hyoutei's training routine.'

'I don't need to spy. My team beat you fair and square and we will do so again, come the necessity,' Seigaku's proud captain said, still glaring at Atobe. 'And I fail to see what in this predicament could actually turn out good.'

Atobe just smiled at that and led Tezuka to the limousine that would take them to school.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2: The school blues

Title: Boy and girl?

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Pairing: Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu

Rating: T (PG13~R)

Genre: AU, romance, comedy

Warnings: gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness

**Summary:** Enter Oshitari Yuushi, the troublesome, meddling genius, to the mix, and what do you get? Maybe taking Tezuka to Hyoutei wasn't Atobe's best idea ever, after all.

Disclaimer: I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

A/N: I'm sorry writing this chapter took so long. Real life outside of fanfiction exists, unfortunately, and can sometimes be a real pain... Enjoy, anyway! The next chapter will be up much sooner :)

* * *

Atobe Keigo knew one thing for sure: he was magnificent, his whole existence was a great blessing for the entire world and obviously, everybody adored him and worshipped even the ground he stepped upon with his perfectly polished, shiny shoes. He was an ideal, a perfection if there ever was one, and naturally as such, he deserved only the best the world had to offer: the finest clothing adorning his god-like body (he might have been only fourteen, but that certainly didn't mean his toned, slim body wasn't godly and, of course, desirable like every other part of his charming person); the most expensive cosmetic products to help pronounce his beauty; the highest level of education, provided by Hyoutei Gakuen; the most luxurious living arrangements, because somebody as glorious would not be able to bloom in a place that didn't ensure his comfort; the loyal group of devoted followers (he had two – his fangirls, who were delighted to bask in his presence whenever he was in the mood to grant them that honour; and his tennis team, but they wouldn't exactly be thrilled to hear themselves being called Atobe's followers); and, last but not least, an awe-inspiring set of skills and abilities. He was impressive in whatever he did, the list starting with studying (only Oshitari could keep up with him in the grades department, to be honest, and only sometimes), moving on to his musical aptness, and ending with what seemed the most important to him: his tennis.

Oh, yes, his tennis was a miracle, a true gift from the gods of Olympus (Atobe was particularly fond of Ancient Greece and its philosophy and mythology, thus he found the metaphor fitting). But what would his skills and glorious victories mean without a worthy opponent, a rival who could stand on equal grounds with Atobe and would provide a challenge, a constant need to improve what was already perfect? It was only natural that, in order to truly become the world's number one champion, he had to find an opponent matching him in skills; it was his own preference, however, that discarded the possibility of choosing many terrific tennis players who wouldn't – couldn't – compare to him in either beauty or intellect. For the longest time, he couldn't be satisfied; he knew he was the only flawless person in the whole world, yet it was entirely impossible for there not to exist someone who could at least come close.

Until, one fateful day, Atobe saw Tezuka Kunimitsu for the first time.

Actually, back then, he didn't really expect the thin, big-eyed boy in totally unfashionable glasses to ever become such an important part of his life. Tezuka was plain and didn't really stand out – that was, until he stepped onto the court and defeated Hyoutei's then-captain. Atobe couldn't tear his gaze away from the other boy for the whole match. He wanted to be on that court instead of the useless captain. That match was obviously meant for him! He could only watch, though, and imagine himself responding to every mesmerizing move Tezuka made.

Tezuka probably never noticed him (even if Atobe did butcher up his captain during his own match), but it didn't matter. That day was the moment when Atobe finally found his worthy rival. After that, nobody even came close to starting a fire in Atobe's soul similar to the one that kept blazing even so long after his first encounter with Tezuka.

Because Tezuka Kunimitsu was, for lack of a better word, perfect. Observing him for the longest time, always hidden, always from afar, Atobe learned that there existed many kinds of perfection and he wanted to battle Tezuka fiercely on court, and defeat – destroy – him, the more he knew about him. Because Tezuka's cool, quiet magnificence was equal to Atobe's passionate and flamboyant one, the heir wanted nothing more than to show his ultimate superiority over his destined rival.

When he finally did face Tezuka on court, he found that it was completely different from what he'd imagined. It was... more. Just... everything about it was more, so much more. The intensity of the match surprised Atobe, but not as much as the fact that at some point of the game, his objective changed dramatically. Winning or losing were no longer of any importance, what mattered was now. And "now" consisted of Tezuka, of intensity, of pain, of adrenaline rushes, of dark eyes fixed on his every move, of a passion on the brink of insanity.

_This_, Atobe thought. _This is the kind of tennis I should play. This, and I never want anything else._

They shone brightly until the very last seconds of that heated duel, and even as, by pure luck, Atobe won, that radiance Tezuka gave off still wouldn't disappear. Atobe knew he was high from the intensity, from the exhaustion, from adrenaline, sweat and pain, but he also knew that if Tezuka vanished from his life now, it would lose all the shiny brilliance and would never make sense anymore. The knowledge was followed by a rather startling realization: not only did he find Tezuka his most worthy rival... not only did he admire the stoic captain of Seigaku – which was strange, as he didn't typically admire anyone – he was also very much in love with the other boy.

This was certainly uncalled for, but not entirely unwelcome. It actually seemed rather logical; because Tezuka was Atobe's equal, his magnificent, beautiful, fearsome and intelligent rival, he was the only person in the world who could be compared to him and wouldn't pale in comparison. Tezuka was special and it didn't matter that was a boy. Atobe didn't care – at this point, he knew that there was nobody else who could make him feel what Tezuka did, and the fact that they were both boys had no meaning whatsoever.

Of course, now, Tezuka was a girl, much to his own (and Atobe's, but the heir would not admit it, as he claimed to be un-surprise-able) astonishment. And, being Tezuka, the captain of Seigaku still gave off that radiance which drew Atobe to him in the first place. His physical appearance changed, but his mentality didn't – which was sure to bring trouble, and soon.

By the end of the first period, "Mitsuko-chan"already had a fanclub, even though "she" hadn't talked to a single person besides Atobe and the teacher. Impressive. Of course, this was Tezuka; Atobe decided it was only understandable that somebody else but him would notice the other's unmistakable charm. Really, it wasn't as if he were jealous or worried, or anything.

As long as Tezuka only talked to him and nobody else, anyway.

Introducing the Seigaku captain as Katou Mitsuko, the daughter of one of his father's associates from as far as Germany, was too easy. Tezuka's fluency with the language contributed to the idea, and well, who would ever be able to see through it? To the Hyoutei Gakuen students, it was absolutely normal for the new kids to be from abroad, or to be somehow related to Atobe's father's business.

Actually, in their world, everything was related to Atobe in one way or another. And it was not that strange that the heir suddenly brought a girl to school, called her "Micchan" (much to her dismay, from what everybody could gather) and had her live in his house. Hyoutei was just... interesting like that. They didn't ask questions – in case someone would answer them. They certainly didn't want that.

'That's an intriguing little miss ya brought in, Atobe,' commented Oshitari Yuushi in his purring, appreciative voice that a fourteen-year old boy really should not possess. He looked Tezuka over, starting of course from the shapely legs and ending with the face, at which his trademark lazy smirk grew into an outright grin. 'Very intriguing, indeed,' he murmured.

Later, Atobe would admit to himself that he had underestimated the infamous genius of Hyoutei. Oshitari Yuushi was almost as intelligent as Atobe himself, although he had a strange tendency to devote his uncanny intellect to completely insubstantial matters, like gossip and annoying others. He was also a pervert and the laziest person in the universe, surpassing even Akutagawa Jirou in the matter – Oshitari was supposedly too lazy to even fall asleep, so he just went around, doing nothing and looking bored.

Somehow, even though he seemed to lack any redeeming qualities whatsoever, the genius still had a fanclub of his own (which consisted of girls and boys alike – Oshitari had said on many occasions that he wasn't picky about such unimportant things as gender when it came to romance. And his insufferable charm made people actually love him more for such daring statements instead of bashing him for being so open about it. Of course, it hardly mattered, since Atobe suspected that in the world he was living in, heterosexuality was a minority. Figures.). And, to be completely honest, he did have a sharp mind that could analyse and bind any observed facts lightening-fast. He usually used it to create gossip more effectively and more often than not, rumours he invented hit really close to home. It was understandable, thus, that one look at Mitsuko's face told him everything he should know to make the connection.

'We need to talk, na, Atobe?' Oshitari suggested with a grin that said something along the lines of, _Oh, I know your secrets and you will explain the rest, or the whole school might accidentally learn something they shouldn't. _

'There is nothing to talk about,' the heir said, his stern expression threatening. _If you tell anyone, you will suffer my wrath. I will make sure you, your entire family, everybody you love and Rikkai's Sanada Genichirou, are ruined, oh, and that's just the beginning, because by the time I'm finished destroying your life, there will be legends about it for the future generations to know._

Yes, Atobe said all that with one threatening glance. He was just that magnificent. But Oshitari, unfortunately, was completely resistant to Atobe's magnificence – and, even more, to his threats – so he simply raised his eyebrow before winking at "Mitsuko".

Who, needless to say, didn't even flinch. Atobe, were he any less of a flawless god-like being, would have envied Tezuka the stoicism. Alas, as it was, envy didn't exist in his life, unfitting for somebody as perfect as himself. By the way, neither did jealousy. And any other bad personality traits.

'Can we please head to our second period, Atobe?' Tezuka asked, as if a fierce battle wasn't being fought for his sake right at that moment. Atobe wondered if the other captain was that oblivious, or if he simply chose to ignore any deviations from the norm that he encountered. If the second option be the case, well, good luck, Tezuka. And welcome to Hyoutei, wherein the normal doesn't lie. Beware, there be monsters (and fangirls)! 'I don't want to know what Rikkai's Sanada has got to do with this, I just don't want to be late for my lessons. Or is it common courtesy for the Hyoutei students to ignore the rules in favour of their own business?'

'Oh, I can clearly see there is nothing to talk about,' said Oshitari, a smug expression adorning his face in reaction to Tezuka's words. Atobe wanted to hit him, or strangle him, but did neither. Instead, he turned to Tezuka, who seemed as disinterested in the whole exchange as he could only be.

'Let us go, Micchan. I'm pretty sure you will enjoy our next lesson. Your father was kind enough to inform me that you are particularly enthusiastic about History,' the heir said, deciding to ignore Oshitari for the time being. He gently pushed Tezuka's back to indicate that yes, they were going to their next class, just like he wished.

Tezuka hesitated, though. And he looked sad, for some unfathomable reason. Was it because his family was mentioned? The heir, who wasn't really that fond of his parents (just like they didn't care all that much for him, as long as he was perfect and didn't soil the good name of Atobe), but he imagined that Tezuka was quite different than him in that matter. His numerous spies rarely did manage to gather any info regarding Tezuka's private life, but when they did, Atobe was always amazed at the soft side of Tezuka that the other captain would sometimes show at home.

He must have missed his parents. And his team-mates, too, most probably. Being separated from everything a person knew and thrown into a completely new environment with little to no familiar elements around was tough. Atobe knew that. He was there many times before, reliving the nightmare in all of the schools he'd been in before coming from Europe to Japan, to Hyoutei, where he finally did find his place.

'You do realize, Atobe, that I also attend the same History classes as you do?' Asked Oshitari, following them like an annoying stalker. Well, Atobe couldn't do anything about him for now but roll his eyes and go along with it. He would deal with the irritating genius and his irritating wit later. For now, they really needed to get to class. Atobe Keigo was NEVER late for his lessons.

* * *

After a few more lessons – which, coincidentally, Atobe and Tezuka shared with Oshitari, much to the heir's dismay – the trio headed to the cafeteria for lunch. Atobe could tell this was something new to Tezuka, who, after all, attended a traditional Japanese school, which Hyoutei was not. While in Seigaku, students most probably ate their lunches from the boxes prepared at home, Hyoutei had a restaurant-quality cafeteria (as saw to by Atobe, who could not stand sub-standard food) with a beautifully decorated interior and well-qualified staff.

They took a table and all three of them sat down with their chosen meals; nobody bothered them. Atobe knew why, of course – because nobody would ever dare trouble him while at lunch break, unless their business was that urgent. It almost never was. They ate in relative silence, enjoying their food (and, in Atobe's case, enjoying the view of Tezuka as the other captain was taking bite after bite of his grilled eel). When they were done with the food finally, Oshitari (who finished first, despite having had the most enormous serving of different foods he could fit on his tray; his friends suspected that he kept a whole family of tapeworms in his stomach) looked really determined. Atobe understood he could not put it off – the three of them had to have The Talk.

'This is an interesting situation,' the genius started. 'I'm sure all of us know what is going on, however, I seem to be the only one deprived of the information on _how_. I want that information.'

'So that you could run around blabbering about it to others, no doubt,' Atobe replied, sarcastically. Tezuka said nothing. He was looking at the tablecloth (white, with a little, blue flower-print), and his face carried no expression whatsoever.

He sat like a boy, with parted legs, not minding the skirt at all – which Atobe noticed only now, much to his horror. Fortunately, the table hid everything which could be seen otherwise, but either way, this was still very improper. He had to teach Tezuka how to wear women's clothes with dignity (not that he knew from experience – he just noticed those things, of course). He'd do it later, though.

'You're hurting my feelings, Atobe,' Oshitari said, making a mock-hurt face. Noticing that his "pain" was pretty much ignored, he sighed. 'Well, this is a special case, right? I wouldn't go around telling people stuff like this. See, first of all, it seems kind of serious, okay. And the other thing is, nobody would believe me if I told them. You have to admit that a story about Seigaku's gorgeous captain turning into a girl and attending Hyoutei is more than a little bit far-fetched, now isn't it?'

To this, Atobe had to admit Oshitari had a point. Yesterday night, when Tezuka in his new form had come to him asking for help, he had trouble believing the whole situation wasn't just a strange dream. The fact that the other captain was close to tears didn't do much to convince him otherwise. Now, he realized that the crying had to be caused by the sudden change of the whole hormonal system in Tezuka's organism; going from male to female in a short amount of time must have been a strain not only on his mentality, but also on his poor, confused body... Atobe knew this now, but last night, when he encountered the crying girl in an over-sized school uniform, everything just seemed too bizarre to be true.

'... I don't know if I can tell you anything,' the heir said after giving it some thought. 'I might be in charge for now, but it is not my call whether we let anybody know or not.'

'I don't mind,' decided Tezuka, speaking up for the first time since the beginning of the lunch break. 'Oshitari knows anyway, so it doesn't matter if he knows how everything happened. Maybe he will be able to help come up with a solution.'

'If you say so,' Atobe just shook his head. He couldn't really picture Oshitari actually doing anything useful, especially consciously. The genius seemed to love his uselessness. It usually meant nobody asked him for anything, which was absolutely fine by him.

With Tezuka filling in the fine details, Atobe told Oshitari the whole story of the unlikely transformation. It took a good portion of their remaining lunch break, but it was okay, since they had nothing to do anyway. Atobe didn't want to go and meet up with the tennis team, figuring that it would be rather risky. Oshitari was one thing, they couldn't avoid him finding out, but the others? Oh no, they certainly didn't need the loud and annoying brats of the Hyoutei team to know. They had to hide "Mitsuko" from their sight for as long as they could.

Oshitari could help.

'Ya always drink suspicious stuff from some freak, na, Tezuka?' The genius asked, giving Tezuka a look full of disbelief and some strange kind of respect, mixed with amusement. 'I mean, that Inui guy might be from your team, but he's still weird. See what he did to ya?'

Tezuka didn't reply. Neither did Atobe, at least not verbally. He didn't hesitate to kick Oshitari in the shin under the table, though. Really, as if insulting anyone was _ever_ a good course of action! And insulting a Seigaku player in front of Tezuka? Smooth, Oshitari. You're an idiot. Yet, Tezuka didn't react at all, apart from maybe staring even more intently at the flower pattern on the tablecloth. Was it really that interesting? But it was only a small blue flower print...

'Ya know, I don't get one thing,' the genius said, after glaring at Atobe and massaging his aching shin. 'What's there to hate about the situation? I mean, man, if I were to become a chick for some time, I'd have so much fun!' There was definite glee in his eyes; he must have imagined himself as a girl, _having fun_. It sounded scary enough.

'Harassing Rikkai's Sanada, without a doubt,' guessed Atobe, who knew his genius well enough.

'Oh, ya bet. That guy wouldn't be able to resist me anymore, were I a pretty girl like our Micchan. He'd be all over me!'

'As opposed to you being all over his, pretty much disinterested, self?' Asked Atobe, raising an elegant eyebrow. He wasn't sure why he was engaging in this conversation which, he was sure, would soon turn disturbing if he let the subject drag on. Oshitari was a pervert normally, but when it came to Sanada, well, most people really didn't want to know. _Really_.

'Na, Atobe, if I didn't know better, I'd think ya were being rude to me,' said Oshitari, narrowing his eyes. He looked a bit like an angry cat. Well, at least he wasn't purring in self-satisfaction. 'I swear if ya say one more word concerning my... _opinions_... about that guy, I will share some of your _opinions_ about Tezuka, with our dear Micchan. You wouldn't want that, would you now?...'

'You wouldn't dare,' challenged Atobe, fully aware that he might come to regret it.

'Try me,' threatened Oshitari, accepting the challenge with an unusual fire in his eyes.

Tezuka cleared his throat.

'I believe we only have a few minutes left to get to our next class. Would you please have your fight after school? I don't want trouble,' he said, getting up. The two boys blinked, but followed him unusually obediently, which earned them a small nod of acknowledgement.

It seemed Tezuka didn't lose his commanding aura even as a girl.

They had no choice but to head to class; in his mind, Atobe promised Oshitari some kind of revenge (most probably in the form of a thousand laps around the school grounds at the afternoon training, if the other even turned up for training; since their loss to Seigaku, tennis practices weren't all that regular for the third years – after all, they had nothing left to train for), but decided to forget it for now. With a bright smile of unrivalled magnificence, he led his only worthy rival to their next class, wondering only briefly what other problems they would get into.

Because, no doubt, they still had a lot coming.


	3. Chapter 3: The new Golden Trio

Title: Boy and girl?

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Pairing: Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu

Rating: T (PG13~R)

Genre: AU, romance, comedy

Warnings: gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness, perverted geniuses running wild

**Summary:** Life goes on, certain matters are addressed, Germany is in Japan and Tezuka is weird, all packed into one small chapter. Atobe has it tough...

Disclaimer: I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

* * *

That first day of school actually was pretty devoid of any major events after lunch break. Lessons went by, Tezuka still didn't talk much (and Atobe was still glad to be the only person the other captain would really communicate with, despite Oshitari's efforts to change this situation), nobody else had a clue as to who "Mitsuko" really was, and the tennis club Regulars didn't even gather for practice like they used to.

This interested Tezuka enough to ask about it.

'I thought you would understand,' said Atobe in reply, and for a moment, a look of sorrow – of hurt pride, broken dreams – adorned his handsome face. 'We don't train as a team anymore. For us, that match against Seigaku was the last chance. There is no Hyoutei team left, Tezuka. We're not going forward,' he shook his head and the usual look of arrogance took over his features. 'I want you to understand, we regret nothing. We won't win as a team, but we're still invincible as individual players, and so, we train as such, when we want and where we want. Don't be mistaken, Tezuka – I won against you and I would win again, I _will_ win again when the time comes for us to play again.'

Because that was how it was. Hyoutei lost the fight and was out of the game; they didn't blame anybody, they didn't regret anything, because they played to the best of their abilities and lost to somebody who simply proved better. Of course, Atobe did think it strange that Oshitari, of all people, would lose to a make-shift combination in doubles; he never commented on it, though. What happened, happened and there was no going back. So instead, they all concentrated on their own growth and progress.

Shishido and Outori frequented the street courts, as far as Atobe knew; they played doubles with anyone willing to challenge them, and never lost. Jirou went to Kanagawa every weekend to beg Rikkai's Marui for matches. He was probably successful, and not only in getting matches from the volley specialist, but also in avoiding Rikkai's insane vice-captain and in gaining Marui's friendship. After all, it was hard not to love the sweet, kind boy (even if his going missing due to falling asleep led to trouble more often than not). Oshitari... if he trained at all, Atobe didn't know about it. He suspected the resident genius of Hyoutei simply lost interest in tennis once he'd lost a game; he was a rather fickle person, known to turn from one hobby to another. Tennis used to be something he was fixed on, but it seemed to have changed. Because of that, Gakuto started training with Hiyoshi, realizing both that he wouldn't make it as a singles player, and that Hiyoshi needed to do some serious work. The acrobatic player also stopped talking to his previous partner, if Atobe wasn't mistaken. Well, that was their private matter and he had no intention of straightening his minions' affairs.

He, himself, trained hard every day for a few hours in the least, with Kabaji or by himself. His marvellous tennis deserved all the time he could spend on improving techniques and developing new moves which would lead him even further on the road to becoming the true Number One. With or without his team, he would rule over the courts around the world when the right time came.

And, if he had it his way, Tezuka would be right by his side, driving him forwards like only a true rival could.

'I will lead Seigaku to the Nationals,' said Tezuka, his tone that of a promise. Atobe looked at him and smiled at the intensity he saw in his rival's eyes. He understood.

'I know you will,' he said, and grinned charmingly at the other boy. 'Hyoutei didn't lose to you guys for nothing.'

* * *

'By the way, Tezuka,' said Atobe once they were back in the mansion after school; the place was much safer to talk freely than the crowded halls of Hyoutei, where everybody could overhear a conversation. 'About you leading Seigaku to the Nationals...'

'Ya better do that, Micchan, or we might not forgive your team, since we're out because of ya,' interrupted Oshitari, who decided to tag along after school. Atobe only accepted his company because he knew the genius was a much better tutor than his own magnificent self, and Tezuka would need a little bit of help in tackling the new subjects he didn't have at Seigaku.

'About you leading Seigaku to the Nationals,' repeated Atobe, with a glare directed at Oshitari, 'there is more to that than just the problem of your current gender. Your arm,' the heir now looked intently at Tezuka, his famous Insight not really necessary to know what was going on in the other boy's head. 'You need rehabilitation. I noticed how you can't even lift your arm properly. I won't have that. Your team thinks you're in Germany, getting better. You obviously can't go to Germany, since technically, Katou Mitsuko doesn't exist and you can't use your real documents... so I'm having Germany come here.'

He expected gratitude or wonder at his amazing idea. Instead, what he got was a double look of confusion from both Tezuka and Oshitari. Did he say something strange? Impossible; he was much too perfect not to be understood immediately...

'Na, Atobe,' said Oshitari, smiling kindly as if he was talking to a little child. 'Ya realise Germany is a country? And it can't come to Japan?'

'Of course I realise, stupid,' Atobe all but huffed in indignation. 'It's a figure of speech! What I meant was, of course, that the best German specialists on sports-induced injuries are coming here upon my generous invitation. They will work with you, Tezuka,' he looked at the other captain again, smiling, 'and you will be back to full health in no time at all.'

'Why, Atobe?' Asked Tezuka softly, averting his gaze. 'You wanted to destroy my arm and you succeeded. Why do you want to fix it now?'

Atobe remembered the guilt he'd felt after that match. For a long time, he couldn't sleep at nights, plagued by the look of pain on Tezuka's beautiful face, knowing he was the one who brought about that pain. He did it for Hyoutei, to ensure a win, and he did it for himself, because Tezuka had been an obstacle on the road to absolute victory, an obstacle he had to overcome. It was all in vain, though. And the guilt remained etched in the back of his mind, clawing at his conscience and depriving him of sleep. Because what he did during that match was still unforgiven.

'Everybody changes, Tezuka,' he said, his voice barely above a whisper. For some reason, the silent accusation in the other boy's words was hurtful; yet, he didn't want to show that it affected him in such a way. So he tried very much to revert to his normal self. 'My magnificence will only benefit from your full recovery – after all, what meaning is there to tennis if you're not there, competing against me in duels of true equals?'

He was aware that he still sounded somewhat off, that there was a lack of his usual arrogance in the words he said; he wondered if Tezuka even understood what he wanted to say: that without him, Atobe saw no more reason to continue playing. If he did, he certainly didn't show it, the only acknowledgement of the heir's words being a curt nod. It didn't matter – after all, Atobe would ensure that Tezuka recovered and played tennis again as if nothing had happened, whether the other captain liked or not.

'Okay, now that the pompous moment's over, let's do some school stuff, na, Atobe, Micchan? There's a lot to cover for tomorrow, like Latin, if I'm not mistaken,' said Oshitari, deciding the time was right for some interruption. This time around, surprisingly, he wasn't wrong – there really was a lot of work for them before next day's lessons.

Hyoutei did have some interesting subjects that other schools didn't teach, after all. And Tezuka had never learned Latin before.

* * *

Atobe thought that buying clothes in normal shops was below him; his own were usually ordered to his measurements or tailored to fit. Shopping in department stores was much too plebeian for somebody as splendid as himself, and he had been very convinced that Goethe's Hell would sooner freeze over than he would be seen in such a crowded, lowly place.

He didn't know if Hell did indeed freeze over; he found out, however, that Tezuka was pretty stubborn when it came to voicing his opinions. And he was of the opinion that one, he needed some clothing apart from his school uniform (which was reasonable if not obvious), and two - there was nothing wrong with clothes manufactured for "normal people"; no matter how hard Atobe tried to talk him into visiting his personal tailor, it was all in vain. Tezuka was dead set on buying cheap, low quality products for peasants. Luckily, he didn't have any money at all, like a typical junior-high student from a public school, which meant Atobe would have more than just a word to say in the matter of what to buy and what not to touch.

Still, having to stand there, in a small and rather cramped shop offering a wide variety of clothes for teenage girls, was a blow to his ego. Even though Oshitari had sworn that the whole department store was pretty luxurious and some of the items on sale would even fit Atobe's refined tastes, the heir found no reason as of yet to believe it. Of course, compared to him, the genius was but a lowly peasant himself, with no sense of style and class, so he was probably easily impressed by things as unimportant as price tags.

Tezuka, however, seemed to be perfectly content with the quality of the fabrics and the variety of fashions, or at least he didn't come off as more displeased than he usually was. He was browsing through racks filled with colourful clothing articles, and an over-excited Oshitari followed him as a willing helper, offering advice, half of which was ignored.

'Ya gotta take this dress, Micchan! It's going to really make you stand out from the crowd!' The genius would exclaim, holding up something white, flowery and lacy, something that would without a doubt show a little too much of Tezuka's legs. Or: 'Isn't this top just the cutest? Ya must try it on, it'll look fabulous on you~!' And so on.

Much to Atobe's surprise – and furious jealousy he would never admit he was feeling – Tezuka eventually accepted every item of clothing Oshitari showed him, and finally, with an armful of dresses, skirts, tops and even underwear (because apparently, he really needed that, too), he disappeared into one of the changing rooms.

Atobe grabbed Oshitari by the arm just in time to stop the genius from sneaking there after Tezuka. Really, the other captain had no self-preservation instinct whatsoever, especially around that pervert – he would have probably let Oshitari in without a second thought. He needed a lesson on girly modesty, and he needed it badly. It was high time he learned to behave accordingly to his current gender. Otherwise, he was just inviting trouble.

Now, as for Oshitari...

'You will not take advantage of Tezuka, is that clear?' Atobe all but hissed threateningly, realising that the other boy would most probably ignore him. Of course, it was not a reason for him not to try and talk some sense into the annoying idiot who, by the way, had been following them for the last two days – or, to put it simply, he hadn't left them for a moment since the moment he'd set his eyes on "Mitsuko" the first time.

'Like ya don't wanna take a peek inside,' muttered Oshitari, his disappointment at the sudden end to his fun evident in both his tone and in the expression on his face. 'Don't ya wanna know if ya still like him when he's a girl?'

'I do not need to resort to peeping in order to know who I am and who I am not attracted to, _Yuushi_. And if you don't stop being a pervert, I am dropping you from the tennis club, since you don't bother to come to practices anyway. Good luck finding a club that would accept your sorry self this late in the year.'

The threat was actually much worse than if Atobe had pointed a gun to Oshitari's head. Hyoutei, which was a school well known for some of it's eccentricities, encouraged it's students to participate in after-school activities. The encouragement went as far as to the lowering of grades and, in the worst-case scenario, the expelling of students who didn't belong to any of the official clubs or groups of interests. Needless to say, not many students decided to put wagers against fate (it was one of the two reasons why the Hyoutei tennis club had so many members; the other was, of course, the club's captain and his overwhelming magnificence that virtually everybody wanted to bask in); Atobe was ready to dump Oshitari into this pit of despair, though, and he was certain he would not feel any remorse after.

'I'm kinda tempted to take that challenge,' said Oshitari with a thoughtful expression.

Atobe was about to reply with something witty and mean at the same time, but just then, Tezuka came out of the changing room, wearing the short dress Oshitari had advised him to take, looking absolutely cute as he blushed and tried to pull the brim of the skirt a little lower.

'Isn't this too small?' He asked uncertainly. Atobe thought that yes, the dress was too small, although the actual size had little to do with it. He also thought Tezuka should wear oversized turtle-neck sweaters and absolutely shapeless jeans while in this form. Any other clothes would make people stare and admire, and Atobe hated to admit it, but he really was pretty jealous.

'No, it's perfect, Micchan, you look wonderful!' Exclaimed Oshitari, loud enough for the whole shop to hear. Did he really like it so much when the attention of peasants was drawn to him? Probably. He was, after all, just a peasant himself, even if he had once dreamt of outshining Atobe himself. 'Every boy who sees you in this dress will love you instantly!'

Atobe looked at Tezuka in an exasperated apology for the genius' idiocy. He caught his gaze and noticed, somewhat unexpectedly, that Tezuka's blush deepened as their eyes met. Then, with a short nod, the other captain all but hid back in the changing room, closing the door shut.

_Now, that was strange,_ thought Atobe, who was used to girls blushing as he as much as looked in their general direction, but he was also used to Tezuka acting cold and indifferent in his presence. He decided to discard the weird behaviour of the other boy for now; he glared at Oshitari (just to make a point) and resigned himself to another few hours of shopping.

There went his precious free time on a nice, Sunday afternoon...

* * *

On Monday, no trace was left of Tezuka's strange behaviour. He was stern and stoic as always, maybe a little more so than normal, but he had a reason for that – he had just failed his first test ever (a paper in Latin), at least from what Atobe could gather. It made him grumpy and even more unfriendly than he'd ever been. He didn't even talk to the heir at all. He did, however, say a word or two to Oshitari. Granted, it was just to shut the babbling genius up, but Atobe still felt a small pang of pain at being ignored.

It wasn't his fault Latin was difficult and impossible to learn in the little time they'd had to make Tezuka come to terms with the new language! Actually, he had even generously offered to let the other captain copy his paper during the test, but Tezuka refused, looking mildly insulted – so really, Atobe was hardly to blame for his misfortune. And the world wouldn't end because of one failed test, especially when said test wouldn't even matter in the end, once Tezuka was back to normal and in his own school.

Of course, telling the other boy all this was like talking to a brick wall about German philosophers. Only, brick walls were friendlier and much easier to charm. All Tezuka did was glare.

'He'll get over it,' said Oshitari softly when Tezuka wasn't listening. 'You were much worse when you blew up that Chemistry lab and had to re-take the exam last year,' he went on with an annoying little smirk, almost purring the offending words to Atobe's ear, but he made it loud enough for Tezuka to overhear.

Much to the surprise of both of them, Tezuka actually smiled at that.

'I'm being unreasonable, am I not?...' He said, shaking his head. He finally pocketed the Latin test. 'Did you _really_ blow up a lab?' He asked Atobe, and a look of curiosity overtook his features.

The heir hated to talk about his own failures, but he was ready for some humiliation if it put Tezuka in a better mood. So he told the boy the whole story (interrupted a few times by Oshitari, who had a few _interesting_ bits to add) and was rather glad with the results. He even got a reluctant chuckle from him, which was his most successful attempt at making Tezuka show some emotion.

All in all, that Monday was beginning to look like a nice, pleasant day of early summer. Lunch was delicious, lessons were interesting, the weather was perfect.

* * *

And then, suddenly, Tezuka disappeared from sight.


	4. Chapter 4: The woes of girl Tezuka

Title: Boy and girl?

Fandom: Prince of Tennis

Pairing: Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu

Rating: T (PG13~R)

Genre: AU, romance, comedy

Warnings: gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness

**Summary:** Running away as a girl had not been Tezuka's best idea ever. Now, he has to face dangers he'd never thought existed...

Disclaimer: I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

Note: Look, a chapter so early after last one! I had fun writing this :)

* * *

Tezuka had to admit, he had had no plan whatsoever for his great escapade. He knew this "running away" business was not the best idea he could come up with even if he did have any inkling of what to do after leaving the relative safety that Hyoutei provided. Alas, he was completely unprepared for all the woes and dangers a girl had to face, travelling all alone in Tokyo.

First and foremost, he had to find a train station, which would have been a much easier task, had he even known what district of the city he was in. A short research gave him the answer, but still didn't help much, since the area was still as unfamiliar as it had been. The expensive, fancy mobile phone Atobe had bought for him was pretty helpful in that matter, though – it took Tezuka only something like ten minutes to work out how to use the Internet and how to work Google Maps. Once he got that covered, finding the closest station was easy. However, that was where he faced another problem: none of the trains running from there were familiar. This was also solved by the use of the omnipotent power of the Internet. Richer with the knowledge of which train best to ride, the boy walked into the direction of the correct platform.

There, he found himself faced with the biggest trouble of all. He had no ticket.

Actually, he had predicted that this might become the biggest flaw in his infinitely holey plan, but he had been hoping that a solution would present itself in the right moment. Stupid of him to think like that – it must have been the girl hormones or something. He still hoped something would magically happen in his favour. But it didn't. The merciless gateway to the platform remained closed shut and there was no way to get in without a ticket.

This was where he should give up. If he was lucky, Atobe and Oshitari hadn't noticed his disappearance yet. He could probably sneak back into the school and calmly think of a better plan for next time. A better plan, involving a possible possession of some small funds for a train ticket. But he didn't want to go back yet. So he had to consider his options carefully.

He could, of course, sell the phone. The money would be more than enough to even take a taxi. But Tezuka didn't really like this solution. The phone, even with its ridiculous amount of useless gadgets, was still the only means of contact he had in case something went wrong and he needed help. He was determined not to call Atobe and not to accept his calls, but he was aware that a situation of potential danger could arise and an immediate contact with Atobe would be his best shot.

So the phone had to stay. However, this meant Tezuka was still facing a metaphorical wall. In vain hope that something life-saving would be posted on the much more solid, real wall of the train station, the boy briefly scanned the numerous messages for travellers on the notice board. The message that actually _was_ helpful took him by surprise – so much so, that he almost missed it. It said he could buy a ticket using his mobile phone. He just had to visit a certain website, choose the kind of ticket he wanted and confirm his choice. The system would then take the correct amount of money from his phone, and he would be sent a number. He would just have to enter that number in one of the numerous ticket machines, and he would have his ticket.

Grateful again for the usefulness of Atobe's little gift (that he had been so against taking back when Atobe had presented it to him), Tezuka used his phone to buy the ticket he wanted, closely following the instructions. Finally having obtained the object of his desire, the boy validated the ticket and passed the gateway. He was pretty lucky – his train was just arriving on the platform. He got on and was even surprised to find himself a seat, which he was happy with – his left arm hurt with every move lately, and it would surely not be able to support him, were he to lose balance while standing.

Hardly believing this amazing amount of luck he had, Tezuka sat down between a salaryman reading a newspaper, and an older gramps. He didn't know that the fashion in which he was sitting would give Atobe a heart attack – he still didn't realise that, while boys were allowed to sit any way they liked, girls didn't have such freedom if they didn't want the world to see their underwear. Tezuka did have the excuse of not really being a girl, but it held not much meaning when everyone thought otherwise. Alas, in the eyes of the other passengers, he was but a teenage girl who sat with legs spread wide, showing off her strawberry-patterned white panties. And he had no idea he was doing something wrong.

When he felt the first suspicious touch, he thought it might have been an accident. He felt a hand on his knee and looked sternly over at it's owner – the old man sitting next to him. The self-satisfied expression on the man's face indicated that it wasn't exactly an accidental touch. Tezuka stared at the old pervert, but the man didn't take his hand away. If anything, he moved it up Tezuka's thigh, as if intent on pushing it under the short uniform skirt.

Before Tezuka could come up with something to do about the pervert, the salaryman made a move – although not with an intention of helping, oh no. Pretending to yawn and stretch, the man encircled Tezuka's shoulders with his arm. The boy was trapped between the two perverted men and didn't know what to do. It was not his style to panic, but he couldn't help it, since he'd never been molested before and it was gross, and...

It might have ended badly if not for a well-aimed blow with a... sun-parasol?... which landed all of a sudden on the grinning old man's head, causing him to yell painfully. The salaryman seemed to have some survival instinct, because he jumped up and fled from his seat. The injured old man quickly did the same, moaning in pain. Somehow, Tezuka didn't pity him at all.

Tezuka's saviour came into sight. A bit surprised, the boy recognised one of the two girls that always cheered on Echizen, the louder one. Her name was Tomoka or something like that. She looked at him curiously, which made him nervous, but thankfully, she didn't guess who he really was. She sat down next to him on the seat the salaryman vacated.

'Are all girls at Hyoutei so weak?' She asked, but it didn't sound mean. Actually, Tezuka could sense worry in her voice. He felt guilty, both for making her anxious and for giving the girls from Hyoutei a bad reputation. Plus, he felt a little bit offended. He didn't find himself weak. He was just shocked. Everybody would be, in such a situation!

'You don't usually use public transport, do you?' Tomoka asked again, not waiting for an answer to her first, clearly rhetorical, question.

'No,' lied Tezuka. Technically, it was the truth. It was his first train ride in this form. So he didn't really lie. He didn't need to feel guilty.

'I thought so,' said Tomoka, nodding her head. 'You're lucky I missed my usual train to school! Now, because I'm feeling generous, I will share with you some advice. Listen and learn, it's Tomoka-sama's marvellous guide to dealing with perverts!'

Tezuka wondered if Tomoka was somehow related to a certain Hyoutei self-acclaimed king. She acted suspiciously like a female Atobe, and Tezuka had to fight the urge to laugh at the image of the pompous heir with pigtails, wearing a skirt and still ordering people around in a commanding tone.

'But first things first. What's your name? I'm Osakada Tomoka, and you can call me Tomo-chan or Tomoka-sama!' The girl said loudly. No wonder she could always be heard cheering on Echizen – she had a really resounding voice.

'My name is Katou Mitsuko,' Tezuka replied with a little polite nod. 'Friends call me Micchan,' he added before fully realising what he was saying. And then he had to wonder.

Did he really consider Atobe and Oshitari his friends? But it made no sense. Admittedly, they were both willing to help him a lot (Oshitari mainly out of amusement, and Atobe... out of guilt? Concern? He didn't know.), and he did have some fun in their company. And even studying completely new, absolutely difficult subjects wasn't that bad with the two of them. But were they his friends? Leaving Oshitari and his perverted jokes aside, Atobe was the one who'd ruined his arm. Should he just forgive, forget and become friends with him? Would that really be okay?

_And would it be that bad? _Asked a teasing voice in his head. It sounded like Oshitari. Tezuka ignored it, because he found it disturbing that his subconsciousness was talking in a drawling Kansai accent. The fact that it was even talking to him at all, he chose not to dwell upon.

'Oi, Micchan, are you listening?' Tomoka asked and effectively recaptured Tezuka's attention. 'You know, it's really rude to space out like that, especially when someone's in the middle of giving you advice, too! But I'll forgive you this once, since you're from Hyoutei...'

'You say it like everybody from Hyoutei is rude,' noticed Tezuka, frowning slightly. 'But they have all been very kind to me, even though I'm new and I don't even talk to them...' He said, almost to himself and not to Tomoka.

'Oh! You're new? Are you a foreigner?' The girl asked, her interest instantly picked. 'I noticed you have blue eyes, and I instantly thought you might be a foreigner. Many Hyoutei students are, I've heard...'

'I'm half-German,' replied Tezuka, sticking to the version Atobe had thought up and spread around. It explained his blue-coloured contact lenses, for one. And he spoke German fluently enough to convince anyone that he was telling the truth. Even if he wasn't.

'Woah, Germany! I've heard they have great tennis facilities there. Our boy's tennis team's captain is in Germany now, but you must know that, after all it's all thanks to Atobe-san. Or maybe you don't know, not everyone in Hyoutei has to be close to Atobe-san, so...'

'I am,' said Tezuka. He blushed. The girl hormones were too confusing. 'I mean, close. To Atobe.'

'Oh,' Tomoka said. And then her eyes widened. 'Oh! So are you his girlfriend? Woah, I didn't know he had a girlfriend! But you're so pretty, of course he would want to have you as a girlfriend...'

Instead of saying anything to correct the mistake, Tezuka only blushed harder, blaming it, again, on girl-hormones. He knew he should say something. He was definitely not Atobe's girlfriend. And he had no desire to be that, too. Atobe wasn't even his friend, not really. He was his rival, and that was it. Nothing more. And he should tell Tomoka exactly that, instead of blushing like a shy schoolgirl.

On the other hand, saying he was Atobe's girlfriend would give him even more of a cover. He was pretty sure that the heir wouldn't really mind that much. He had been very supportive of Tezuka all this time, and he would surely see the advantage this would give.

Hopefully. Because Tezuka didn't correct Tomoka's mistake in the end.

* * *

Tomoka talked constantly for the remainder of the ride. Her choice of subjects wasn't exactly peculiar, but Tezuka was content with it. During the course of her monologue, the girl unknowingly gave him information on the Seigaku tennis team that he so craved. He learned more than he'd hoped to know, and not all of it put him in good spirits.

From what Tomoka was saying, it seemed his Regulars were pretty worried about him and, what was much worse, about their own inability to play and win in his absence. He decided that no matter what, he had to at least talk to Oishi, because his vice-captain needed a good, inspiring motivation talk. The worst that could happen would be all of Seigaku realising the truth and, to be completely honest, would that really be as bad as Atobe made it out as?...

Tezuka got off the train at exactly the same station as Tomoka did. Upon her inquiring gaze, he explained that he actually had a message to the Seigaku tennis club from their captain, and Atobe didn't trust anyone else to deliver it. To that, Tomoka looked at him sceptically.

'He sent his girlfriend so far via a train? Does he know you've never travelled that way before?' She asked rather dangerously, and Tezuka felt a pressing, unexplainable need to defend Atobe, who was after all doing so much for him.

'I told him it's okay. He doesn't know, I didn't want to worry him,' he explained, lying and feeling very bad about it.

And as he walked with Tomoka down the familiar road leading to the school, he wondered if Atobe noticed his disappearance yet. He probably did, considering it had been an hour already. Was he worried? Angry? Or did he rejoice at the possibility of being free of the annoyance that was the gender-flipped Tezuka Kunimitsu? Somehow, he found the last option rather saddening. He didn't understand his emotions himself.

His phone started ringing. He rejected the call which was, as expected, from Atobe, and was startled to see he already had forty three missed calls, most of them from Atobe and a few from Oshitari. They must have tried to reach him while he was on the train and he had had no service. He sighed softly. He would apologise to Atobe later. He would try and make it up to him, or something. Right now, he had a responsibility of higher priority: he had a team to lead to Nationals.

* * *

Tomoka helpfully led him to the school tennis courts, and even prevented him from carelessly entering the boys' changing room. He had completely forgotten he was a girl from Hyoutei, now that he was on his own territory. It kind of hurt that he was not allowed to simply wear his Regular jersey and join his friends – his comrades – during their warming up jog.

He noticed at once that the team wasn't trying hard enough. Their running – something so basic – was lacking and irregular. Their attitude actually brought to his mind the image of the defeated Hyoutei team, the team that had given up it's existence after a heavy loss. He was not accepting such behaviour from his Seigaku. He promised Atobe he was going to bring Seigaku to Nationals and he would not go back on his word!

'If this is the kind of hard training the Seigaku Regulars are doing, then maybe you should give up right now!' He yelled at the top of his lungs, drawing the attention of everyone. The action was out of character for him and he would never have done such a thing... but it was okay. He didn't come there as himself, after all. 'Would your captain be satisfied with your lame excuse for an effort? Because I think he'd be disappointed!'

'Oi, Micchan, don't be so harsh, you'll make them angry if they hear,' muttered Tomoka in a warning tone, but Tezuka could tell she thought he had a point. After all, she'd told him something similar on the train.

The Seigaku Regulars had heard him very well, judging by the fact that all of them had abandoned their jogging in order to gather around him. For a moment, Tezuka only stared sternly at his team-mates, with no trace of fear. They wordlessly stared back. Then, Kikumaru broke the rather uncomfortable silence.

'And who are you? Did Atobe send you to spy on us? He took away Tezuka-buchou, what else does he want?' He asked in a rather unfriendly manner.

'Eiji! That was rude,' exclaimed Oishi, scandalised at the behaviour his doubles partner was exhibiting. He looked at Tezuka apologetically.

'Kikumaru-senpai's right, though!' Yelled Momoshiro. 'What does Hyoutei want here?'

'And she was rude to us first!' Added Kikumaru, glad for the back-up he received from at least one person.

'Maybe we should try and listen to what she wants to say, though,' suggested Inui, scribbling something in his green notebook. With some dark, malicious satisfaction, Tezuka noticed the data-man had lost weight and was looking rather tired. Good. It meant he really was working on an antidote day and night, just like he should.

'According to my data, Atobe wouldn't let this particular girl come here unless it was about something very important.'

'Really?' Asked Kawamura, sounding absolutely perplexed. He wasn't holding a racket. 'Why do you think so? I mean, we can trust Inui-san's data, I'm not saying we can't, it's just curiosity...'

'That's because she's Atobe's, uh,' Inui stammered and looked at Tezuka for support, but the captain didn't have a chance to say a word before Tomoka supplied helpfully,

'She's Atobe-san's girlfriend!'

Everybody seemed surprised at that, although truth be told, Inui recovered admirably fast from his state of shock. Which was good, since he was supposed to "know" that already and a surprised expression would make the act much less believable.

'So the Monkey King had a girlfriend, huh?' Echizen asked with a smirk. 'I thought he was gay for Tezuka-buchou...'

Many things happened at once. Kikumaru and Momoshiro gasped for breath. Oishi cried 'Echizen!' and covered the first-year's mouth with his hand, apologising profusely. Kaidoh hissed while turning red, and he looked at his feet in obvious interest. Inui started scribbling even more furiously in his notebook. Kawamura scratched his head sheepishly. Fuji smiled in polite interest. Tezuka blushed and glared at Echizen. Tomoka just shrugged.

'You were obviously wrong,' she said and Tezuka noticed that she omitted the usual enthusiastic "Ryoma-sama" from the sentence, meaning she did disapprove of the boy's rudeness. Good for her, Tezuka thought, that she wasn't completely blinded by her hero-worship. This made her infinitely smarter than any typical twelve-year old girl.

'So, putting the matter of Atobe's love interests aside,' said Fuji, sounding really amused for some unfathomable reason. Tezuka felt uncertain. 'What is his supposed girlfriend doing in Seigaku?'

Torn between being scared of the Seigaku genius and being grateful to him, Tezuka nodded lightly. Once again in the spotlight, he said, 'I have a message for you.

'Tezuka has safely arrived in Germany and is setting in very nicely. He has had his first rehab session and is of good spirits. He's doing his best in order to rejoin you as soon as his arm is healed. He will contact you himself once his roaming and his Internet connection start working,' he told his Regulars, and lying to them made his heart clench painfully, but he knew he was doing the right thing. 'Oh, and one more thing. _Don't get careless._' He smiled at them and this, on the other hand, felt amazing. He briefly wondered why he didn't normally smile like this.

* * *

He had no intention of staying in Seigaku any longer. Atobe had called sixteen more times and Tezuka knew he was pushing it. He hoped the heir wouldn't overreact and mobilise an army to search for him, or do anything just as immature, but knowing him, Tezuka was a bit worried about that. So he apologised for interrupting with the team's training (and was apologised to by repentant Momoshiro and Kikumaru, and an unwilling Echizen), thanked Tomoka for everything and said goodbye.

But he didn't manage to leave the school yet. Just as he was about to pass the gate, he was caught by Fuji, who gave him a look so serious, the boy knew there was no running away. So they went to a rather secluded spot under the trees. Soon, they were joined by Inui.

'This has been most amusing,' said Fuji looking from one boy to the other. 'I demand to know exactly what brought upon this situation, what it has to do with a certain pastel-pink drink from a few days ago and how come Atobe has my phone number, because I surely didn't give it to him.'

'It was an accident, I am working on it,' Inui assured. 'I've been making progress, of which Atobe has been notified...'

'More importantly still,' the genius interrupted him. 'Why did you come here, Tezuka? I may not think too highly of Atobe Keigo, but at least his influence protects you from harm. Do you know how disastrous it would be for the whole school to find out about your situation? And can you even imagine what could happen to you if the authorities caught wind of a boy turning into a girl with no surgical assistance?'

'You watch too much science-fiction,' Tezuka muttered, countering the last argument when he found no reply for the other ones.

'And there is only a twenty per-cent chance that anybody would notify...' started Inui.

Fuji interrupted him again. 'You're not coming here again until you're back in your normal form. And you'd better do your best at rehabilitation like you said you were,' he told Tezuka, looking at him with a scary intensity.

'You're forgetting your place, Fuji,' Tezuka replied coolly. 'I'm your captain.'

'No, you're not my captain. As far as I know, my captain is in Germany, getting his arm fixed in order to come back to us and lead us to national victory,' said Fuji gleefully. 'You, as we have been informed, are Atobe's girlfriend. From Hyoutei. So you don't even have a right to be here. It's for your own safety, so please don't come back.'

'He is right,' said Inui softly. 'You are safer in Hyoutei, Tezuka. I've called Atobe and he's on his way here. Go back with him; I'll do anything I can to return you to normal soon.'

Tezuka knew he had no choice. Sighing, he nodded, but he felt a little bitter. They treated him like a burden, like someone troublesome. They didn't want him to be there for them.

* * *

Atobe came for him in less than twenty minutes. He thanked Inui and Fuji for taking care of him and led Tezuka to the car without a word. The whole journey to his ridiculously huge mansion was spent in silence. Tezuka was going to say something, to apologise, many times, but each time he hesitated and said nothing in the end. Atobe was angry with him, and rightfully so, and he didn't really have an excuse for his actions other than wanting to see his team-mates who didn't actually want to see him all that much.

It had all been a mistake, the whole escapade. He should have known.

* * *

When they reached home and went inside, Atobe suddenly wrapped Tezuka in a tight embrace.

'Don't you ever do that to me again,' he said softly into the startled boy's hair. His voice sounded strained, like he was on the verge of tears. 'Don't you ever disappear like that again. I thought you were gone for good... Promise me you'll never do it again.'

And Tezuka did the only thing he could at that moment – he promised.


	5. Chapter 5: PMS  Please Make it STOP!

**Title**: Boy and girl?

**Fandom**: Prince of Tennis

**Pairing**: Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu

**Rating**: T (PG13~R)

**Genre**: AU, romance, comedy

**Warnings**: gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness, blood every woman has to face every month

**Summary:** Tezuka is not himself, Atobe gets ideas, Fuji is scary, Inui is helpful and finally, somebody snaps. Apologies are made and nobody is blamed for anything after all, so happy times are ahead! Or are they?

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

**Note**: A chapter, finally! Plus a bonus episode :D Have fun~

* * *

Something changed in Tezuka after his _big adventure_ in Seigaku, and Atobe couldn't really believe what he was seeing. The stoic, peaceful and magnificent captain of the Seishun Gakuen tennis club that he knew was gone, and instead came a complete stranger that got irritated with as much as a teasing remark. While Tezuka used to get annoyed easily, he'd never been this quick to show his emotions. Right now, though, he was constantly moody and acquired a bad temper of doom, which shadowed over his brilliance and toned down his magnificence a little bit.

Atobe had no idea what was going on, much to his own irritation. Neither did Oshitari, but that was nothing new, as Atobe didn't really expect the lazy genius to become useful all of a sudden. He was getting slightly worried, though. Tezuka was acting... bitchy, for lack of a better word, and it was more out of character for him than anything the heir had ever seen him do.

There was not much time to worry, though. The teachers had apparently decided that since the tennis club wasn't functioning anyway, the students had a lot of free time they could devote to studying. They were given so much extra work, even Atobe found some trouble with completing everything and doing anything besides his homework. Moreover, Tezuka's rehabilitation had started and, given the other captain's mood swings, Atobe felt the need to always be present during the sessions to provide help and encouragement, should it be required.

As of yet, it wasn't. Tezuka did every exercise with precision and listened to every word his physicians were saying. He suffered through the painful and tiring training sessions, he pretended to enjoy the hurtful massages, and all the while, he kept taking his painkillers in almost frightening quantities. Atobe did ask the doctors if this was acceptable, and they told him it was perfectly normal – as time went by, Tezuka would feel less and less pain, and he would lay off the painkillers by himself. Hardly convinced as he was, the heir had no intention to argue with the world-renowned specialists he'd brought to treat Tezuka's injury, so he let it go for the time being.

However, the development provided him with an idea which, truth be told, was not the most brilliant of his many discoveries up to that moment, but it still held in it some possibility. He decided it was worth at least giving it a try. After all, only two people would know if it proved fruitless, one of those people being himself.

He called Inui.

'Check how large doses of painkillers might affect that crazy drink of yours,' he said as soon as he heard the call being accepted, neglecting good manners in favour of faster communication.

'I'll tell Inui to do just that,' replied a gentle voice which certainly didn't belong to Inui.

'Fuji,' Atobe greeted coolly. He had no time to talk to any geniuses. His homework was waiting, along with Tezuka's, because the other captain still required a bit of help in handling the more exotic subjects Hyoutei Gakuen demanded its pupils to know – Latin and Greek in particular. 'Interesting that I hear you instead of Inui, when I'm fairly certain that the number I chose was correct. To what do I owe the dubious pleasure of talking to you?'

'How rude, Atobe. I will get straight to the point, then, although I didn't think you were stupid enough to have to be told precisely. Listen carefully: do not take advantage of Tezuka. He's confused, but he doesn't like you that way for sure.'

Atobe was actually at a loss of how to take that. What was the genius of Seigaku referring to? And what was with that implication that he had any reason to think Tezuka liked him in _any _way?

'I have absolutely no clue what you are on about,' he told Fuji truthfully, ignoring his insult like it was nothing. To him, it was. He knew his own worth and not a person in the world could really offend him with mere words that aimed to hurt.

There was silence for a moment and then, the genius chuckled. In spite of himself, Atobe felt a chill run down his spine.

'Oh, Atobe, do you mean to tell me you _didn't know _Mitsuko was your _girlfriend_? Why, that is interesting...' The genius sounded cold, mocking in his false amusement. Atobe decided he preferred Hyoutei's perverted Oshitari, along with his laziness and uselessness, any day.

'I do not know whose idea for a joke that would be, but I find it decidedly unfunny. Is that all you wanted from me, Fuji Shuusuke?'

It was unbelievable how that boy could make Atobe angry just by talking over the phone in a semi-polite manner. He supposed it must have been a genius thing. After all, Oshitari also had a penchant to get on his nerves by simply existing in the same universe as him.

'No. Atobe Keigo,' said Fuji, using the same full-name basis as Atobe did, to both sound official and to spite the heir without a doubt, 'I demand a match.'

Atobe blinked and looked strangely at the mobile phone. Had he heard right? Why would Fuji, the Seigaku genius of all people, want to play tennis against him? And why did he think Atobe would respond to such an ill-mannered demand?

The genius hurried to explain himself, and Atobe thought he could picture the mocking expression on his face as Fuji said, 'The winner will earn the right to get close to Tezuka.'

'I wouldn't have suspected you of making up such crude competitions. Tell me, Fuji, will Tezuka appreciate being treated as a prize? Will he wear a red ribbon with a cute bow on his head, and present himself to the lucky winner?' Atobe jeered, shaking his head to himself at _some people's stupid ideas_. He was getting bored with this joke, and he really had no time for such nonsense.

'Tezuka won't have to know. Whoever loses will just gradually distance himself from him. Will you accept the challenge, Atobe, or are you too much of a coward?'

He didn't want to do something so ridiculous. Tezuka was not some valuable prize to be awarded to the winner of a stupid contest, and he refused to treat the other captain – his equal! - as that. But the genius had hit a nerve. Atobe was no coward. He couldn't back down from a challenge as direct as that. His pride as a man wouldn't allow for such a thing to happen.

'I accept,' he said thus. 'But I don't care if you distance yourself from him when I win. He finds you a friend, so be it.'

'So generous,' Fuji chuckled, unamused. 'Are you so sure you can win against me?'

'I will,' said Atobe simply and hung up.

* * *

Later, Inui called to apologise for having given Fuji his phone. He proceeded to explain the genius, saying that Fuji had trouble accepting the fact that Tezuka had run off to the Hyoutei captain's place instead of trusting his supposed best friend. Atobe brushed him off (feeling incredibly smug), but not without telling him why he'd even called in the first place. Inui promised to check it and suggested that he'd really need a human guinea pig at this point.

'I'll consider it,' said the heir, wondering if he could maybe spare Oshitari. After all, his genius had said he wouldn't mind becoming a girl, if only to bother Rikkai's Sanada a bit. With that rather tempting, if a bit scary, option in his mind, Atobe hung up and set off to find Tezuka so that both of them could suffer together while completing their long-overdue Latin homework.

* * *

Tezuka didn't really get better for the remainder of the week. He was irritable and had trouble concentrating both at school and later at home, so Atobe had to call in a favour from Sakaki-sensei to have both of them excused from lessons until Monday. It didn't help improve the situation too much, though. Even removed from the stress of Hyoutei's teachers who tried to work him to death, Tezuka either didn't talk at all or he hissed at Atobe like an angry cat. While it was a bit cute, it got rather tiresome after a while. Being under constant attack at his own house was not something Atobe could tolerate for long, even when it came from Tezuka.

'What, in the name of all that's holy, is wrong with you?' The heir exploded finally on Friday just after breakfast, which Tezuka didn't eat because of a random nonsense reason he came up with. Yelling at a guest was something he'd never done before, and he did feel bad for being so impolite, but honestly, how much verbal abuse could one person take before snapping? He really tried to be nice. However, he was not made of stone!

'What's wrong? What's wrong indeed! Let me remind you that what's wrong is the fact that I have this body and nobody seems to mind it but me! Inui has zero results in his work! Fuji doesn't want me to come back to Seigaku, because apparently, I'm a burden! Oshitari keeps perving over me and it must be oh so funny for sure, since I'm not particularly attractive, and surely not as attractive as any of the girls who would sell their souls for him! The girls hate me for being in your company, and you... you are the worst!' Exclaimed Tezuka angrily and went as far as _kicking a chair_. Which he must have regretted at once, because the bulky antique furniture didn't budge after the boy's foot connected with it. It must've been painful.

'I get it that you hate me, but will you cut it off finally? I am getting a headache,' Atobe said, annoyed that somebody was actually yelling at him.

The other captain glared at him hatefully. 'Oh, because your magnificence can't stand a little pain when it's delivered to him. What was I thinking!'

'You know, you were much better as a boy! At least you didn't throw hissy fits then,' said Atobe, exasperated. 'How many times do you want me to say that I'm sorry? Sorry for ruining your arm, sorry for causing you pain, sorry that you got turned into a girl by an invention of one of your friends – which I had nothing to do with, by the way. I'm sorry, okay?'

Atobe wasn't a person who found apologising easy, since it meant admitting he was somehow in the wrong. But he was long past the point of giving a damn. The situation was unbearable as it was and he wanted it over. He wanted to talk to Tezuka in a civilised manner. He wanted to play tennis against his rival. Was that really too much? But Tezuka just looked at him strangely and turned on his heel to go back to his room.

They didn't see each other for the rest of the day.

* * *

Atobe had the intention to oversleep on Saturday, but as it happened, he didn't manage to. He was cruelly woken up by a blood-curdling scream of horror that could only have come from Tezuka's bedroom. The heir, terrified that something awful had happened, jumped out of bed and ran to Tezuka's room as he was, clad in only his boxer shorts, hair astray. He didn't knock, forgetting about courtesy in the wake of possible danger, and what he saw in the guest bedroom almost made his heart stop.

Blood... He had never seen so much blood before. And Tezuka was sitting in the centre of the bloodied bed, scared and shocked and confused, but thankfully alive. Upon Atobe's arrival, he looked up.

'I... I don't know what happened... I woke up and wanted to go to the bathroom and it was. Like this. I... I'm...' He blushed a dark red colour and looked away. 'I'm bleeding from down there,' he whispered in humiliation.

Atobe couldn't say, later, what had happened next. He must have panicked or maybe even fainted (which would have been an embarrassing turn of events), because one moment, he was there talking to Tezuka and the next, he was in his room, with Oshitari in all his annoying glory by his side, drinking some calming tea, and Tezuka was having "The Talk" with a trustworthy, mother-like chambermaid, who of course was under the impression that the other boy was and had always been a girl.

As it turned out, the result of the cursed drink of Inui's was that Tezuka was a full-fledged woman and his body acted accordingly. The massive bleeding, in contrary to being extremely frightening, was actually quite natural. Tezuka just had his period. Nothing to worry about.

Except that it was just plain weird. Tezuka being a girl, but still acting mostly like a boy, was one thing. It required some getting used to, but in the end, treating "Mitsuko" the same way as he would treat "Kunimitsu" was easy. But this? This made Tezuka into a real, true girl, with girl body parts, capable of giving birth to children in the future.

What if, despite every effort put into developing an antidote, Tezuka would never be able to transform back into a boy? Usually, Atobe didn't let himself think like that, but now he couldn't help it. What would happen then? Apart from the obvious shock Tezuka's parents would go through upon learning that they had a daughter in place of a perfectly good son, the disappointment beyond repair that the Seigaku tennis club would feel at the loss of their beloved captain and the depression Tezuka, himself, would undoubtedly face... What would happen?

'I'd take care of him,' said Atobe to himself, ignoring Oshitari, who observed his descend into insanity with mild interest. 'I would protect him. And I would marry him, of course. I wouldn't care that he was a woman. I wouldn't. Because it's still him.'

'That's all nice and noble, even if slightly creepy without asking his opinion,' interrupted Oshitari in a lazy drawl, 'but your feminist of a chambermaid is probably giving him strange ideas right now as we speak. I bet after this, he's going to stay away from us _boys with dirty minds_.'

'Why would he? He's much too reasonable to let others' words cloud his judgement,' Atobe said with an indignant huff. 'By the way, I've been told you've dropped out of the tennis club? Do you enjoy crossing the line so much?'

'What, you're worried?' Asked Oshitari gleefully.

'Of course not. If they punish you and you come crying to me for help, I'll just tell you it's what you deserve,' Atobe stated without hesitation. 'What worries me is that you are, without a doubt, planning some mischief. Let me remind you that I have no intention of ever pulling you out of trouble if it arises. Is that clear?'

'You're insulting me by insinuating that I'll ever need anyone to help me. You know I'm pretty much capable of charming my way out of any trouble, na, Atobe?' Said the genius with a smile. 'Don't worry about me. Better worry about yourself. Micchan with a period, a match with Fuji... you seem to attract a lot of potentially disastrous situations lately.'

There was a knock and the door opened.

'Atobe-sama, your guest has requested an audience with you, sir,' said the chambermaid they were talking about earlier; she looked fairly disappointed that after her lecture, "Mitsuko" still wanted to talk to any boy at all. Atobe gave Oshitari a victorious look. He was right.

'Thank you. I will see Te-Micchan right away,' the heir replied, so pleased with himself that he almost forgot about the masquerade he had to keep up. He pretended he didn't hear Oshitari chuckle at his slip-up, instead going straight to Tezuka's room to see him.

* * *

'I'm sorry,' was the first thing Tezuka said after Atobe arrived in his room. The Seigaku captain was sitting curled on an armchair, wearing comfortable tracksuit trousers and an over-sized t-shirt, and he was even paler than usual, but at least he was neither scared nor angry anymore. 'For... you know... everything.'

'Yes, I know,' said Atobe, giving him a charming smile to show that he was not mad at all. 'How do you feel?'

'Like a girl,' replied Tezuka with a shrug. The heir laughed at the little joke like he was supposed to, but he wasn't really amused at all. He wondered what his rival was thinking. Did he worry about the future? Was he frightened that he would stay a woman forever?

He wished Tezuka would confide in him. He wished he could help in any way other than providing Inui with means to conduct research. He wished there was anything he was capable of doing in order to save the other captain from a fate both of them didn't want. For now, though, the only thing he could do was to give Tezuka shelter and to protect him from harm's way when he was in his vulnerable form. And he wasn't doing a great job...

'I was awful for the last few days, wasn't I?' Asked Tezuka, looking up at him and effectively derailing his train of thought.

'Yes,' said Atobe truthfully. He grinned. 'You were driving everybody crazy, my own magnificent self included. Along with that nonsensical demand of your resident genius, it was pushing me towards the brink of insanity.'

'Fuji demanded something?' Tezuka questioned with a carefully neutral expression.

Atobe swore mentally at his carelessness. 'He seems to want to play against me,' he explained. He didn't elaborate, in hope that Tezuka wouldn't ask any further. Miraculously, the other captain seemed content with this. 'What did that woman tell you, by the way?'

Tezuka actually smirked at that. It was a view so rare and unexpected, Atobe couldn't believe his eyes. He didn't show his surprise, though. He had a reputation to upkeep.

'She was dead set on convincing me that every boy in the entire country will turn into a predator now that I'm a _mature woman_,' Tezuka said, still smirking. 'Apparently, males can somehow sense that I'm _ready for reproduction_ and they will jump me when given a chance, so I have to be watchful at all times.'

Atobe laughed. Trust that old mother hen to come up with something as ludicrous as that! He decided to give her a pay rise. She deserved it for giving him the laugh after such a tiring week.

'So. Do you still blame me for every bad thing in the world, or were those just the hormones speaking?' The heir asked after some time spent in relative, comfortable silence. He disguised it as a joke, but to be honest, he was a little afraid of the reply. He didn't want Tezuka to hate him. He disliked feeling this insecure and weak. When did he start caring what others thought?

He didn't. He just cared what Tezuka thought.

'Atobe,' said Tezuka seriously, and paused.

'Nah, don't say anything. It's just a joke,' Atobe said, shrugging, and it was completely not like him, because he was suddenly scared. He shouldn't have brought up the subject.

'Atobe,' repeated Tezuka, forcing the heir to look at him just with the tone of his voice. Funny how his voice didn't lose its commanding qualities even after changing into a voice of a girl. 'I don't. Blame you, I mean.' Tezuka didn't smile nor did he show any emotion at all, but still, Atobe's heart did a little dance of victory and joy inside his chest.

It was official. He was becoming pathetic in his crush on the other captain.

'At first, I did,' Tezuka admitted, going on. 'I was hurt and the doctor said I would never be able to play tennis again. I hated you. Then, your coach gave Ryuuzaki-sensei some brochures from a rehabilitation centre in Germany, assuring her that if I decided to go, all expanses would be paid for me. He didn't say it, but I knew at once that he came on your behalf. I knew it was your way of apologising. I was ready to accept the apology, to go and have my shoulder fixed, but then Inui brought that hellish juice of his to practice. When I... turned into this, I didn't know what to do. I couldn't run home, and I couldn't go to any of my friends. The only person I could think of that may have helped me was you. I don't even know how I found out where you live. The thing is, I have almost forgiven you before coming here. And after all you did and keep doing for me, I can't blame you for what happened in that match. So I don't.'

He stopped talking and Atobe could only stare at him in silence. He realised that his magnificence demanded for him to say something witty, so that he didn't look as dumbfounded. He remained quiet, though. What could he say? That he was glad? But it was obvious even without words, just from his expression, just from the fact that he wanted to hear it so much. That he was sorry? No; Tezuka had outright told him that there was nothing left to apologise for.

That was the moment when they became something more than rivals and equals. That was the moment when finally, they became friends.

* * *

*** BONUS: THE PRINCE OF ITALIAN CUISINE ***

The rest of Saturday was spent on catching up with school work (because they missed a lot of classes due to Tezuka's, ah, health problems), although given Oshitari's presence, it wasn't as boring as it could have been. Especially when, driven by a rather foolish remark of the genius that a true man didn't need servants to acquire his own food, the trio raided the kitchens in order to try their hands at cooking, much to the horror of most of Atobe's well-trained staff, who, by the way, got shooed out of the room so that they wouldn't bother the boys.

'What are we going to make?' Asked Tezuka curiously, looking at his comrades in crime.

'I want something Italian,' Atobe said thoughtfully. 'Maybe spaghetti?'

'Sounds good. And I can make risotto,' the Seigaku captain offered with enthusiasm.

'Then I'll prepare _minestrone_ soup,' decided Oshitari. 'I can already tell we're going to rock as chefs!'

They didn't.

At first, everything went rather well. They set off to preparing their individual cooking debuts; Atobe boiled the water for pasta, Tezuka started up with chopping the vegetables and Oshitari did the same. However, things started to go wrong after a while.

Tezuka was a natural at anything he touched. If he set his sights upon a goal, he would stop at nothing to complete the objective, no matter how high the cost. He'd proved that in tennis already. However, there was one thing he just had no clue how to tackle and, unfortunately, that thing was cooking. Chopping up the carrots, mushrooms and leeks was easy and he finished quickly. The real problem was actually the rice, which had seemed so simple to prepare, but proved to be the most difficult part of the meal. Two burnt pots later, he didn't give up only because the other two boys encouraged him to try one more time.

Atobe was facing similar problems, but with the pasta. The first batch he'd cooked turned out too hard for consumption. He threw it away and set the second on the heater, meanwhile starting to prepare the meat and sauce. Overcoming his disgust at having to touch something as unappetizing as minced beef, he formed very small meatballs and fried them on the pan. They turned out rather nice, so he added all the sauce ingredients that he thought were reasonable. Chopped tomatoes, vinegar, parmesan and some other cheese he'd snatched from the giant fridge, and even soy sauce – all of those things found their way into the pan. He was so preoccupied with his unusual mix, he forgot all about the pasta, so that when he did remember, it had already turned sticky and gooey. He had to try again.

Oshitari, in the meantime, was doing relatively well. He ruined nothing, he didn't add any strange things into the pot, and his soup even looked and smelled appetizing after some time, much to the envy of the other two boys.

After some time, their meals were finally ready and looked kind of presentable. Tezuka's risotto was only slightly brownish, Atobe's pasta turned out perfect after the sixth attempt, and Oshitari's minestrone was actually pretty nice. Rather proud of themselves, the three boys decided to tuck in, still in the kitchen.

'Ugh, that's disgusting!' Exclaimed all three of them almost at once upon trying Atobe's spaghetti. While the pasta was just right, the sauce was a total disaster. At least it didn't look as bad as it tasted.

They turned to the risotto and each of them took a tentative bite. The taste wasn't repulsive, all of them had to admit that. Because actually, the dish had no taste at all. In his excitement almost not burning the rice, Tezuka completely forgot to add any seasoning. This made the risotto completely unfit for human consumption.

Hungry like never before now, the three boys looked at the pot of soup hopefully. Oshitari gave each of them a steaming bowl full of his masterpiece. That was when they learned that it was really no masterpiece at all. Where Tezuka failed, Oshitari went overboard and the amount of salt in the soup could easily be called deadly. To add to that, when Tezuka poked the soup with his spoon, he found in it a fat, white worm. Somehow, they lost their appetite after that for hours to come.

In the end, the staff thankfully came back to the kitchens after Atobe apologised (very profusely) for disrupting their work. They were expressively forbidden from cooking anything vaguely Italian ever again. As for that evening, the boys eventually ordered take-out Korean food.

Kimchi had never tasted that good before.


	6. Chapter 6: Oshitari's worst day ever

**Title:** Boy and girl?

**Fandom:** Prince of Tennis

**Pairing:** Atobe Keigo/Tezuka Kunimitsu, one-sided Oshitari Yuushi + Sanada Genichirou

**Rating:** T (PG13~R)

**Genre:** AU, romance, comedy

**Warnings:** gender-bent boys who refuse to act like girls, general craziness, some talk of sex

**Summary:** _Oshitari Yuushi finds himself in many situations he really would have preferred to avoid. Somehow, he doesn't suppose many of them will end as well as he wishes they would... _

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing under the name of The Prince of Tennis. The characters belong to their creators (manga author Konomi Takeshi, the studio that made the anime). I write the story for fun, I make no profit from this.

* * *

The room was dimly lit. Layers of dust covered every surface but one desk, littered with various ingredients of unknown origins. That one desk was also the only place in the room that carried any signs of being used; pages and pages of complicated alchemical formulas, small bowls and lots of pens lay on one side in disarray, while the other side was strangely tidy.

There, on a special stand, stood multiple vials filled with liquids, arranged by the intensity of colour. At the back were the neon pink and almost purple ones, while the pastel, light pinks sat in the front. Many in-between hues could be found in the middle rows. Each vial seemed to catch light in a slightly threatening way. The liquids seemed to bubble dangerously.

Next to the desk was a chair. On that chair, tied tightly and unable to escape, sat Oshitari Yuushi, wondering what sin he'd committed against humanity in general and Atobe specifically to have found himself in such a situation. The last thing he remembered before waking up in this highly uncomfortable position was... Ah, yes. Studying. He helped tutor Tezuka for another Latin test, he had tea and all of a sudden, he was very sleepy. There had to have been something in the tea.

Atobe, the sly bastard. Oshitari should have known better than to trust him.

Still. Where was this abandoned place? The room was big enough to fit thirty people for a dance class, and it held lots of equipment Oshitari probably couldn't even name. It was safe to assume it was some kind of a chemical laboratory, albeit a rather neglected one. Somebody had to have been working there, though, judging by the one tidier desk.

What was the purpose of bringing him there? Oshitari had to wonder. Was it a punishment Atobe inflicted upon him for something or another? It seemed probable, although he couldn't imagine why the pompous heir would take such troublesome means in order to discipline him, when he could have just as well stopped talking to him.

Well, regardless of what intent of Atobe's had brought him there, Oshitari didn't want to stay in the dark laboratory forever. Actually, he wanted to leave as soon as possible. Something was definitely not right here – _besides _the fact that he was tied up and unable to move. He tried to free his hands, but the bonds were too tight. It actually hurt.

'I'm sorry, Oshitari-kun,' said a soft voice from behind him; a vaguely familiar voice at that, one that made him shiver in anxiety. Something akin to fear started to creep up Oshitari's spine. He wished he could look behind him, but at the same time, he was thankful that it was impossible. This way, he could postpone the inevitable horror of recognizing his captor for a few seconds more.

A guinea pig squealed in the corner, recognizing its master and demanding attention. From the sound of it, the animal wasn't agitated in the least, which was somewhat interesting in a chemical laboratory, where its kin were usually put at high risk. Oshitari wondered whether it was a good omen or a bad one for him. Many psychopaths were animal lovers. Most of them weren't that fond of humans.

'I assure you, I am not going to hurt you, Oshitari-kun,' promised the same soft voice and the genius of Hyoutei could hear the cluttering of a cage being opened, as well as the sound of food being poured into the animal's bowl. At least, he supposed that's what it was. 'Atobe-san made it perfectly clear that he doesn't want to collect your corpse. I assured him that the probability of you dying during this experiment is less than fifteen per cent. He was quite content with that, from what I gathered.'

Oshitari paled. Fifteen per cent. It was quite a lot, wasn't it? That Atobe. Of course he wouldn't really care if Oshitari was put at risk. He only cared about Tezuka. And tennis too, but mostly Tezuka. What kind of crazy punishment was this, and why did he have to suffer through it?

He didn't want to die.

His captor finally came closer to face him. Recognizing him, Oshitari didn't know if he should be relieved or horrified. I front of him stood Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu, wearing a white lab coat. He wasn't smiling and looked pretty tired. All of a sudden, everything made sense.

'I'm your human guinea pig,' the genius of Hyoutei said.

'Yes, I'm afraid so. Atobe-san volunteered you, since at this phase of the experiment, the influence of the juice on humans has to be tested,' replied Inui politely. 'Let me explain to you the procedure.

'First of all, you are to be referred to as Specimen Y from now onwards. This is a normal course of action to simplify the protocols. In each stage of the experiment, the specimen's overall condition will be closely monitored to avoid any risk. The procedures are simple: each stage of the experiment is divided into three phases. They all begin with serving the specimen a potion from a suitably tagged vial. Following this, a protocol will be prepared, in which each reaction of the specimen will be properly marked. The last phase is a thorough examination of the specimen to search for the desired effects.'

'Great,' said Oshitari, voice dripping with heavy sarcasm. 'And out of sheer curiosity: how many stages of this have you planned?'

'As many as are required to achieve the goal,' Inui said vaguely, ignoring the sarcasm. 'However, there is a probability of eighty-two per cent that only one trial will be needed.'

He turned to the desk and procured a pair of synthetic gloves. With a somewhat manic smile, he slipped them on and said,

'Shall we proceed?'

* * *

Oshitari opened his eyes after what felt like hours of sleep, filled with dreams and shadows he couldn't remember upon awakening. He frowned and shook his head, which caused his glasses to slide down his face, where they sat in a crooked way. This served only to irritate him slightly, but he said nothing, instead glaring at Inui, who stood in front of him with a rather satisfied expression on his face.

'The experiment ended successfully,' said the dataman. 'Please wait here, Oshitari-kun, while I contact Atobe-san.'

'In case you didn't notice, I'm tied up and can't go anywhere even...' Oshitari began, but didn't finish. His voice. Something was very, very, _very _wrong with his voice. 'I'm... I'm a girl,' he realized, blinking as he looked down at his body with wide eyes.

The first thing he noticed (apart from the glasses, which were bigger than they used to be and fell down to his lap; luckily, they were only for show and their lack didn't affect his vision in the slightest) was the bust. His breasts were _enormous_, enough so to make the shirt of his school uniform fit tightly to his chest. While Tezuka was pretty flat, which was actually normal for a fourteen years old girl, Oshitari was easily a size FF. He shot a dark look at Inui, suppressing the urge to call him a pervert, since he was technically still at his mercy. He didn't want the dataman to get any weird ideas. Definitely.

He just wanted to go home, actually. He felt very tired, strangely so, considering that he had been sleeping for some time before and had done no physical exercise for who knew how long.

Inui disappeared somewhere, presumably to call Atobe. Oshitari sighed and wondered what would happen to him next. He didn't look forward to being Inui's full-time human guinea pig, but on the other hand, he could not go back to Hyoutei like this. Shishido would laugh his ass off at him, and that was completely unacceptable. Moreover, it would probably be enough to blow Tezuka's cover. His team-mates were dense at times, but they were certainly not completely stupid. Two familiar-looking girls showing up while two boys went missing would surely give them enough of a clue to solve the puzzle.

He supposed he could just stay at Atobe's place, feigning sickness until Inui gave him an antidote, or something. The thought had a nice ring to it. In the mansion, he could always eat as much as he wanted, and there was that wonderful swimming pool to cool off in, oh, and the music room, where he could play the violin for as long as he wanted to. He wouldn't be missed at the tennis practice, because there was no such thing Hyoutei anymore, and he resigned from the club anyway; he was also bright enough to skip school for a couple of days, since he would be able to catch up with the rest of the class in no time at all.

Although he didn't expect Atobe to want him around all the time. Somehow, he was under the impression that the pompous heir didn't like him all that much. This latest incident of offering him as a lab rat for experiments was proof of that.

'Atobe-san said the driver will pick you up in ten minutes,' Inui informed him, reappearing in the room. He untied Oshitari, who got up, massaged his poor wrists, and stretched.

His muscles were sore, and the breasts were surprisingly heavy. He sighed; he needed a bra, and he needed it as soon as possible. He also needed clothing that would actually fit him, since he was close to losing his uniform pants, which were much too big for him now, even though his hips were nicely, proportionately wide. He wondered briefly if Atobe was going to buy anything for him to wear. He doubted it. Atobe never bought things for him out of kindness.

* * *

He was obviously wrong; some clothes were already waiting for him in a bedroom that Atobe told him was to belong to him for the time being.

'Of course, you will be living here. I have to keep you under surveillance now, _Yuuko_,' said the heir when Oshitari asked. 'You may rest now. I will take you shopping later in the evening.'

But rest wasn't something Oshitari could obtain that easily, it seemed. Just after Atobe left him alone in the bedroom (a very nice and big one, as expected of any guest room in Atobe's mansion), sitting on the bed, Tezuka sneaked inside, with curiosity written clearly on his face.

'Atobe said you're also a girl?...' He asked, and then his eyes widened as he saw the confirmation of Atobe's words very clearly. Then, to Oshitari's amusement and surprise, he blushed. 'They're huge,' he said so softly that Oshitari barely heard him, quickly looking away from what he was looking at.

Meaning, the boobs.

'Yeah. Uncomfortable,' Oshitari replied conversationally. 'If you ask me, I think your pal Inui is a pervert.'

Tezuka laughed a bit weakly, most probably still recovering from the shock of seeing Oshitari's big breasts, and sat next to the genius of Hyoutei on the bed. He was feeling much better, now that his period was over; but he took to wearing baggy clothing at home all the time, a habit Atobe didn't approve of, but could do nothing about. He was also keeping his hair in a low ponytail, because Atobe refused to let him have it cut. All in all, he seemed much more used to the temporary body now than he had been in the beginning.

Oshitari hoped he wouldn't have to get used to it at all. Thanks to his (albeit unwilling) participation in the experiment, Inui knew the ingredients to the concoction that caused all of this now; surely, he would be able to come up with an antidote very soon?

'So, now we're both girls,' said Tezuka with a small smile; Oshitari rather liked it when the Seigaku captain smiled, it was a pleasant view that not many people could brag to have seen. 'What do girls talk about?'

'How should I know? I've never been a girl before,' Oshitari replied, grinning. 'Those at school always talk about boys, and about Atobe... oh, and pop bands. Do you know any pop bands?'

Tezuka shook his head. 'Do you?'

'Sure. Gakuto loves them. I don't care that much, personally,' Oshitari shrugged. He preferred different types of music. Like classical music. And cheesy love songs. 'So... boys? Wanna talk about boys, _Micchan_?'

'If you want to, _Yuuchan_,' replied Tezuka. 'After all, we know a lot about boys, don't we? Seeing as we _are_ boys, actually...'

'Aww, stop spoiling the fun,' Oshitari poked him on the cheek. Tezuka chuckled. 'Anyway, boys. Let me tell you one thing about them. They are devious creatures, boys are. All they want from girls is sex, and some more sex...'

'Oh no. No way, Oshitari. I'm not discussing sex with you,' Tezuka protested, blushing and frowning at the same time. It looked indescribably cute, especially so since it was Tezuka, of all people, doing it.

'Okay. No sex. It's not like we can discuss much. I haven't had sex with anyone yet. You?' Asked Oshitari, rising his eyebrow suggestively.

'No! Of course I haven't!' Hissed Tezuka and hit him on the arm. 'Change the subject, or I'll tell Atobe you molested me!' He threatened in a low voice.

Oshitari laughed and lay down comfortably, closing his eyes. He wanted to loosen the buttons of his shirt a little, since it was constricting, but he didn't suppose Tezuka would appreciate the view it would undoubtedly present. _That_ would be molestation for sure. He sighed.

'I think Atobe doesn't like me much,' he confessed, half-jokingly, although there must have been at least a hint of serious hurt in his voice that he didn't manage to contain.

'That's not true,' replied Tezuka, settling down next to him. 'Sometimes when he talks about you, it is clear that he holds you in high regards. I may not know him too well, but I can tell that he values your friendship a lot. I wouldn't expect him to admit it, though, he's not the type to reveal his real feeling that easily. He just keeps it all inside and takes care of you guys...'

'... You observe him a lot, don't you, Tezuka?' Oshitari inquired, cracking one eyelid open to glance at the other boy, who blushed and poked him between the ribs. 'Ouch! What was that for?'

'For stupid assumptions.'

Oshitari couldn't lie that he had no idea what assumptions Tezuka was talking about, since he had a fairly good idea concerning the matter. It may not have been clear to either of them, but Oshitari, as an outsider, could see how the two boys were attracted to each other. Of course, it had been the case with Atobe from the start and only a fool could miss it; Tezuka, however, didn't use to have this kind of feelings before the whole gender-swap fiasco, and this seemed to confuse him a lot. And any mention of the possibility turned him into an aggressive bully, as proven at that moment.

'Whatever, Micchan. You keep your feelings bottled up if you want. I can tell you about my crush, though. Since, you know, we're girls, and we should talk about our crushes, even if you refuse to admit to having one,' Oshitari said with a grin after a while of silence. 'You know that guy? Rikkai's Sanada Genichirou.'

'I've met him,' Tezuka admitted reluctantly, still glaring at the genius of Hyoutei as if he had done something really, really bad. Like kicking a puppy. Or a kitten. Something of this variety. 'He's your crush?...'

'Well,' Oshitari actually blushed a little, but went on without hesitation. 'Yeah. I've seen a few of his matches last year, and one this year... He's really passionate about tennis, isn't he?'

'I guess,' said Tezuka non-committally. 'I haven't seen him in a long time.'

Oshitari nodded. 'Well, I talked to him once or twice. Maybe _talk_ is not the right word... more like, I was told off by him. Funny, he knew who I was. He charmingly called me a failure, or something to that effect. He said I was never going to achieve anything in tennis if I have no intention of getting serious about it any time soon. He also said that if I were in Rikkai, he wouldn't tolerate my laziness,' he laughed and shook his head. 'I just told him I was glad I wasn't in Rikkai, then, and left. But that night, I had my first wet dream of him slapping me and...'

'_Oshitari, too much information!_' Tezuka yelled and hit him with a pillow, hard.

The pillow fight that commenced then was epic, and the maids in Atobe's mansion would find feathers in many locations even months after the whole incident.

* * *

'I am _not_ paying for that hideous thing, Oshitari,' hissed Atobe and the genius of Hyoutei pouted, but he hanged back the pink mini dress he was holding. It was already the third article of clothing that Atobe didn't like and refused to buy for him, and it was getting slightly frustrating. At this rate, completing a wardrobe for him would take months.

'I would wear it, though...' Said Oshitari, drawling the syllables like he always did, even though now, when his voice was changed, it didn't give off the impression of a purr that he wanted. It added to his irritation with life in general. 'Why do you have to be so difficult, na, Atobe?...'

'I will not have you dress like a common whore,' Atobe said with a tone of finality. He seemed completely immune to Oshitari's pout, even though the genius knew for sure it was super-adorable (he had practised it in front of the mirror for the whole of fifteen minutes, much to Tezuka's amusement; he had spent another quarter of an hour plucking the feathers from his hair). 'You shall wear proper clothes. You look indecent enough as it is,' the heir pretended he didn't cast a fairly disgusted glance at Oshitari's bosom.

'It's just tits, Atobe, girls usually have them. Even Tezuka has them, only smaller,' Oshitari pointed at the Seigaku captain, who was further back in the same shop, looking at the newest collection of fashionable menswear with unhidden longing. 'If anyone's to blame for mine, it has to be you, since you volunteered me for a sex change. And what the hell do you want me to wear, a sackcloth? Would that be proper enough for Your Highness?' He complained unreasonably; he was pretty tired after the pillow fight, and the events of the whole day prior to it.

'No, Oshitari,' Atobe said, exasperated. 'In fact, it would be enough if the clothes you chose covered as much as your _underwear_. Exhibiting it when you are supposed to make a good impression in your new school tomorrow...'

'What new school?' Oshitari interrupted him, blinking in surprise. 'You didn't tell me I was changing schools! Why should I?'

'Isn't it _obvious_, Yuushi?' Asked Atobe, rising his eyebrow in question. 'You are called a genius, aren't you? I hope you did not imagine you were going to continue attending classes the normal way while you are in this condition, because that would cause me to be disappointed in your supposedly superior intellect. Also, it is pretty much impossible for you to sit at home all day, I do not trust you enough to leave you all alone in my house for hours. Your idea of spending free time does not agree with my common sense, if you understand what I mean. Thus, I have some made arrangements, which were only possible thanks to an old acquaintance of mine – he is now hospitalized, but he still pulls all the necessary strings, which was rather convenient for my case.'

'Cut it out and say it to my face, Atobe. Where are you sending me?' Asked Oshitari, forcing himself to remain calm, even though he was rather worried.

Atobe smiled at him, and in that smile Oshitari could see his own nearing demise. The feeling of dread increased tenfold as the heir continued to smile in silence for the next few minutes, which felt like hours or days. Tezuka approached them with a jacket from the men's section (size XS, but as it was designed for men, it was still much too big for him in this form), giving Atobe a sweet, big-eyed look that was sure to win the hearts of everybody in the vicinity; the captain of Hyoutei nodded at him, and then turned back to Oshitari, who didn't even have the time to wonder when Tezuka had learned how to manipulate Atobe this effectively.

'As much as I hate to explain everything in such a wretched environment, I will do so upon your request. You certainly do remember that you said you would love to be a girl, since that would make Rikkai's Sanada fall head over heels for you,' he reminded the genius, and the smile on his face turned into an evil, evil smirk. 'Here comes your chance. Starting tomorrow, you will attend Rikkai Dai Fuzoku as Yukimura Yuumi, my dear friend Seiichi's cousin. I talked to him via phone and he promised to have the tennis club take care of you, which will give you a perfect opportunity to sweep Sanada off his feet,' he said, clearly amused. 'I will certainly be rooting for you. Be awed at my magnificent organizing skills!'

Oshitari somehow managed not to faint, but he still didn't remember how the remainder of the evening passed.

* * *

Going to bed late at night, he desperately wished the morning would never come. Or that he would wake up and it would all turn out to have been a dream, a scary nightmare. He hoped for it with all his might. He was even willing to give his pocket money to charity if his horrible fate of the following day could be somehow avoided.

Yet all his hopes and wishes were in vain. The morning still came, he was still a girl, and he was still going to Rikkai. He didn't suppose life could get much worse.

Oh, how wrong he was.


End file.
